Kitchener Rangers’ Ben Fanelli Remains In Intensive Care After Brutal Hit
Exactly one week ago we showed you a questionable hit by Los Angeles Kings defenseman Rob Scuderi which stood on the boarder between "clean" and "dirty". There should be no debating where the hit we bring you today stands.
It was another full slate of OHL games this past Friday, and what began as an entertaining night turned out to be a scary one for the Kitchener Rangers, their fans, and the family of Ben Fanelli.
With his team up 2-0 eight minuted into the second period, Fanelli skated the puck behind his own net. As Michael Liambas of the Erie Otters came bearing down on him, the Rangers defenseman attempted to reverse the flow by playing the puck back to his partner, but that didn't stop him from receiving a vicious hit to the head, which sent his helmet flying into the air and knocked him to the ice where he lay unconscious for the next 40 minutes.
The Kitchener players began a prayer circle as trainers attended to Fanelli, who lay motionless beside a pool of blood created from a cut he sustained on his head. His mom, who was in attendance with some other family members, reportedly fainted from the sight of her injured son and had to be revived.
Fanelli would eventually be taken off the ice and airlifted to the hospital where he remained in critical but stable condition. He was diagnosed by doctors at the Grand River Hospital as having sustained a fractured skull and orbital bone, as well as facial lacerations, but has been making progress.
The latest news coming on Sunday states that he remains in intensive care, in critical but stable condition. Our thought and prayers go out to Fanelli, his family, and friends during this tough time.
As for the culprit, Liambas has been suspended indefinitely by the OHL as the incident is under review. Such aggressive behavior is nothing new for the Otters forward as only a week ago he was featured in two separate fights during a rough affair with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. This time his actions were nothing short of barbaric. Although he was reportedly very shaken up by the incident, that should not overshadow the lack of respect and utter disregard for the health of Fanelli he displayed on this scary play, which truly has no place in the game of hockey.
Let the debate on head shots continue. (Here is the replay on CBC HNIC Saturday Night)
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The suspension is completely uncalled for.
Anyone who has played any amount of reasonable competitive hockey or knows the rules will always say that at most he deserves is a charging or a roughing. He put his shoulder directly into the guy’s left shoulder /shoulder blade and the person receiving the hit didn’t take the hit right. He turned after the checker had already committed to the hit and lost his helmet during the hit. That is not a dirty hit by far. He got lined up when he wasn’t paying attention and payed for it.
That’s what being hit while you’re unaware of your surroundings looks like. The person generally gets knocked the hell out. Look at any of the top 500 professional hockey hits of the year, and I will put down 500 dollars that more then 90% of them consist of the person receiving the hit wasn’t paying attention or had his head down. Did they receive suspensions or get fined? No. They are generally clean hits and usually have someone who isn’t paying attention to what is going on around them.
The only difference with this situation is because his helmet flew off (because he didn’t see the hit coming/wasn’t prepared for it) and he face-planted into the boards.
I can’t believe that we are gonna suspend someone for a Roughing penalty. Maybe the ones that complain about this should watch a more “civil” no contact sport like baseball. Be careful though, a lot of guys should be kicked out because they sometimes hit guys with the little white ball. Come on this is hockey right? How did the Greats that came before survive? I can’t believe they did. They weren’t even wearing helmets back then. Tired of everyone wanting to clean up hockey, there is nothing wrong with it.
First of all there is things wrong with Hockey. Hitting from behind as someone approaches the boards, hit’s to the head, sticking the leg out on someone, and running the goalie, there are better ways to get into the goalies head. Anyway this particular hit I have to say it’s not dirty, it’s an opportunistic hit yes but not dirty, I think Hockey players should be thought better how to take hit’s and to keep there heads up. I feel for the guy but it’s really his fault.
I mean you both make an excellent point, but he was sitting in a pool of blood where he was laying unconscious for 40 minutes. Sure it was a clean lay, besides the elbow, charging and obvious boarding. I don’t thinkg he should be banned, just punished.
Sam, I have basically two points to make here. I understand that you have a lot of experience with the game. I have played and followed the game voraciously for more than 30 years. and here’s my 2 cents:
First, You’re absolutely right, Ben Fanelli had his head down on the puck, a quintessential sin in the game. However, I disagree with your contention about Liambas’ intent here. If you watch the video in the following link, you’ll see the angle is from the rear of the net, and you can clearly see that when Liambas’ dropped his shoulder, he raised his elbow targeting the head, and, indeed, struck Fanelli in the head, which caused his helmet to fly off. Additionally, Fanelli did not take the hit wrong, as you contend. Instead, he didn’t react at all because he never saw it coming – he had his head down on the puck.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1a12G5xWYE&feature=related
Second, I think in and of itself, you could argue the lack of intent here and say that the Liambas suspension is excessive. However, on the whole, Liambas has a reptation as an under-achieving cement-head. Couple that with all the buzz about massive amounts of injuries in the sport lately and the leagues’ feelings that something has to be done and you can see how they made an example of Liambas
If a man runs a stop sign and kills another driver, it was an accident. He did not mean to hurt anyone. It’s just an unfortunate occurrence. However, if we find out that this particuar driver has a history of driving fast and recklessly, you can see how it may be necessary to come down on him harder for this incident because his reckless behavior culminated in the death of another.
I really do worry about removing the physicality from the game. It makes it difficult to rule on incidents like these. However, the game’s getting faster, the players are getting bigger, and the equipment is getting better. I think this is leading to players hitting harder and perhaps trying to be more aggressive in “Finishing” checks. If you look at the injury reports just for the NHL, I think you’ll see we’re facing a real problem here. And until the various leagues come to a hard and fast position on what constitutes a dirty hit, you’re gonna see suspensions for some hits like this, and on others, a complete lack of reaction.
Bottom line here, if Liambas didn’t have the reputation he has, and Fanelli bounced up and skated on, and if so many players weren’t getting sidelined, we wouldn’t be talking about this.
oh and p.s. when the original six era guys were surviving the game without helmets, the average size of a hockey player was 5′7″ and 140 pounds. I don’t think you’d find that today. Bobby Orr said, “Every team had a big guy when I played, but they couldn’t catch ya. Today these kids are all big, and they can catch ya.”
If you watch the hit, its hard to watch, but the kid getting hit turns his back, and thats why it happened. Yes its charging/boarding whatever you want to call it, but if you turn your back to a guy hitting you then this is what happens folks. Teach your kid to keep his or her head up and dont turn your back or you will get hurt.
This hit was simply a combination of basically everything that could have gone wrong in a hard, but clean, hit. The play that Fanelli made can get you badly hurt even in a non-contact, recreational game with the forechecker attempting only a pokecheck and bumping into him. He not only had his head down, but turned at the last second in a way that made it impossible for anything but his head to hit the board first. Some people have said that maybe his chinstrap wasn’t done up tight enough, but after watching this hit a number of times, I don’t think that even a full cage would have protected him much.
Liambas may be a bit of a meat-head who is there to rough guys up, but teams need those guys. A team of snipers isn’t going to last long in today’s game (nor would they have in any era). Players are bigger, stronger and faster than the days of no helmets. This hit was entirely clean. The only possible call would be boarding (a major and a game misconduct due to the injury). There was no charge, as Liambas glided the last 10 feet into the hit and made contact with both skates on the ice. There was no elbow (pause the video at 0:44 and you can see that the yellow stripe on the right elbow of his jersey is well below shoulder level). This simply was a very hard forecheck, a punishing hit, and a recipient who put himself in the worst possible position to take the hit safely.
Greg, if he wanted to take his head off, he would’ve left his feet and thrown his elbow into Fanelli’s head (which, given the situation, may have allowed the helmet to absorb a little more of the impact and caused less damage, ironically). He did what all hockey players are taught to do, Fanelli did what all hockey players are taught not to do, and this is the unfortunate result. I truly believe that, based on this hit alone, he does not deserve to be suspended. This was a freak accident that occurred on a clean hit.
I wish all the best to Ben Fanelli for a speedy recovery and all the best to his family during this hard time. This is not what anyone expects to happen when they step onto the ice, nor is it anything that anyone should have to suffer.
On that note, kids keep your head up, especially near the boards. This can happen to anyone, so make sure to protect yourself. Hitting is part of the game.
Maybe (and, as a former energy player/grinder/enforcer in my midget and junior days, it severely pains me to say this) it is time for the NHL to look into the mandatory use of better head protection (cages, full shields, etc…). I know that mentioning that is blasphemous in Canada, and makes me a wimp among hockey players, but it may be getting to the time where the forces involved in these collisions are getting great enough to at least discuss it. Look at the evolution of football equipment as players got bigger, faster and stronger. They used to play with no facemasks, and even no helmets, too.
he used his elbow which is as against the rules as much as high sticking and it resulted in a serious injury. He should most certainly be at least suspended. Bobby Orr was thrown out of the sport and successfully sued for a similar incident in the 70’s. He should consider himself lucky he is still allowed to play the sport.
I would agree that he deserved to be suspended had he used his elbow, but if you watch closely you can clearly see that his elbow is tucked into his side at impact. Contact was made shoulder to shoulder and he didn’t even hit him with the elbow while finishing the check. If you don’t believe me, pause the video at 0:44. It’s pretty clear that his elbow was down.
The player that got hit also didn’t have his helmet on properly. The reason he suffered such a devastating impact is because his helmet popped off from the initial contact.
Would he still have received a concussion from the hit? Probably.
Players in hockey need to start realizing that although the helmet is uncomfortable, having it properly secured and the chin strap in place can save your life.
liambas should not be kicked out because it was not all his fault fanelli did have his head down so which they should not kick hiom out just for a hit that became a big incident but not all his fault
Can i have your Autograph ? If you want to play Devil’s Advocate, then fine. But dont pretend.
Hockey is changing. And, it’s going to change some more. Anything above the shoulder is illegal.
Take your selfishness to MMA.
I totally agree with you. The hit did not look dirty at all.
Sam, give your head a shake….”didn’t take the hit right”?????
That’s one of the most ridiculous things I’ve read in a while. How do you take a hit like that right? Liambas’ intend was to injure, thats clear. If you wanted to take a guys head off, that is EXACTLY the way you would hit him. He got the result he went for, now we have to watch him say how sorry he was, and he never meant to hurt.
What a steaming heap. I’ve played, and Im a fan of hitting anf fighting, but this intent to hurt has to stop. Liambas should never be allowed to play again
Yes, a hit where you can clearly see him drop his shoulder to put it into the guys side/shoulder. He should have been aware of the hit instead of turning.
And not taking hits right is something I have been taught for the past 10-15 years of playing. I’m currently playing at the college level and it is something that is STILL taught. If it is something that you’ve never heard of, then I highly doubt you know what you are talking about or have played competitively.
Liambas lined him up, the guy turned, and didn’t absorb the hit into the boards. He went rigid to try and push back into Liambas and got shot into the boards and his helmet came off. Again, this was undeserving of a long, long suspension if one at all.
Since you don’t know the difference between a dirty hit, and a clean hit onto someone who isn’t paying attention/has their head down. Then maybe you need to be shown.
90% of these hits are clean, and are onto people that have their head down and aren’t paying attention.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TLJ4CgSI1Yw
The best example of “taking a hit” or “absorbing a hit” like I said many times before is shown on the 6th hit of that video. You see him get next to the boards and getting ready to take the hit because he is actually paying attention.
Pause the first video of the hit on this page at early 44 seconds. You can clearly see Liambas drops his shoulder to place the hit and instead of taking the hit you can also CLEARLY see Fanelli DROP his shoulder to try and lean into Liambas.
Which resulted in him not taking the hit right, slinging him into the boards, and losing his helmet from the whiplash. It was a strong clean hit that was made worse by a player who couldn’t recieve it
I have to side with Sam on this one, the hit was, as far as current rules are concerned, a clean hit. Some responsibility has to be placed on the player taking the hit, on the ice you need to be aware of what is going on around you, when you know a player is commited to the hit it is cowardly to turn your back and assume he has time to react and adjust from the Hit. Limbas did nothing that hasn’t been tought to every kid playing any kind of competitive hockey, and that is to finish every check. I highly doubt Greg has ever played any level of competitive hockey other wise he would hae a better understanding of not only the rules but also of hockey culture.
It is unfortunate that Fanelli was hurt on this play, and his injuries are simply the result of bad timing. The actions of his pass pulled his upper body away from the hit at the wrong time. Instead of taking the hit on his shoulder and arm, he took it on his shoulder blade. As players, we were all taught to finish our checks, and that is what Liambas was doing here. He was coasting into the hit, and didn’t leave his feet, so it is not a charge. He didn’t have his hands up so it’s not roughing or elbowing. The only penalty that could be called on the play is boarding. The commentator on HNIC said it perfectly, that Liambas was “shaded” by the goaltender. Fanelli never saw the hit coming and was thus unprepared to take it.
I don’t know if Liambas has a history of making such hits like this one, but I don’t think he should be suspended for the hit. Ejected for the game, yes, but not suspended for something that was never meant to happen.
Could not have been said any better.
agreed
It seemed that it could be a charging penalty, But the hit looked fine to me, it just got him in the worst possible way.
I dont think he intended to injure him……hope he gets better soon.
Have to agree with most on this one. Possibly charging because of the steps he took toward the player but that is about it. In no way should he have turned his back to the opposing player after the hit was already in progress. If he stays with his shoulder forward we may be watching clips of a decent hit where both players get up instead of one winding up in the ICU. Hope the kid recovers ok.
He was clearly hit from behind and never saw the hit coming. In my opinion Michael Liambas was indeed trying to seriously injure someone/anyone and he is the one that should be held responsible for the hit. If we ever meet Sam, I will do my best to blind side you and just say it’s your fault for not taking the hit well. You are by far one of the most obtuse cavemen I ever had the oportunity of reading comments from. It’s a game not UFC fighting…
Yes, it’s a game that needs to be played right. Liambas dished out a hard ass CLEAN hit like how they are supposed to be finished. You can’t play hockey knowing only how to deal hits and not being able to take one because you will be hit.
I, along with many others around my post said why it was a clean hit and the person who didn’t take the hit right needs to be held somewhat accountable also. While you gave no reason except “I r gonna blindside you and see howit feels!!1!11″.
A hit from behind is considered blindsided. But a blindsided hit isn’t always from behind. The player turned while a hit was in progress. Liambas finished his hit like he was supposed to while unfortunately Fanelli didn’t stay aware of his surroundings and absorb it.
agree with you Eddie,
being from Europe and following north american hockey I don`t like the phrase ” he just finished his check”.For me it sounds like an excuse for hurting someone. Hockey is for me most of all finesse with some added force.I have followed the game because of players like Denis Savard,Pavel Bure,Crosby,Kovalchuk etc.If a player has only one task and that is to chase and intimidate other players I belive he should find something else to do.If the game is going to grow world wide we have to stop these incidents.
But could be that I am not macho enough…..
yes trond.. you aren’t macho enough.. quit trying to change the game and make it something it is not.. you’ve always had enforcers and you’ve always had snipers.. if you want “finesse” watch figure skating
This hit, although really unfortunate for the kid, was a clean hit. He stopped striding before the goal line, used his shoulder and following through. It wasn’t a head shot, it wasn’t from behind. Most of the problem is the fact that the players do not where there helmets properly. Where your chin strap tight to your chin. It is designed that way so the helmet will not come off.
This is a clean hit. I have watched it over a dozen times. This guy should not be suspended. Players need to learn how to take hits. Simple as that.
He should be charged with assault. You morons who think that this is sport should get your head checked. Hockey has the potential to be a great sport once the goons are taken out of the picture. Such a sad pathetic bunch who think he did the right thing.
GetALife
You are clearly just a retard go back to watching figure skating.
Ok, so I dont play hockey but played football but I enjoy watching hockey when I get a chance. This injury is a result of the player not wearing his protective helmet properly; plain and simple. Had he had on his helmet correctly he might have sustained a concussion at worst. This is directly comparable to NFL guys not wearing thigh pads or knee pads or tailbone pads. When I played football in high school we wore all of those pads I just listed and they protected those parts of me the way they were designed too. For whatever reason, I believe a lot of it has to do with what looks “cool”, you see NFL guys especially WRs leave out some if not all of the pads I listed. Or in some cases they just slip in a thigh pad that is no more than a 1/3 inch thick plate to give the impression they are wearing them. Vrtually no one wears the knee pads and you see them get knocked out of games all of the time for knee injuries that were the result of direct hits rather than muscle sprains or whatnot. The same goes in hockey with players not wearing face masks or visors which is just plain stupid. Apparently this is an effort by the player to look tough or something. I will never understand it. Why would you want your teeth knocked out by a puck if you could prevent it by wearing a facemask?? Or what about receiving eye damage that might not ever get better because you dont want to look like you are scared to receive just that?? It makes no sense at all. I would have to guess that when watching hockey no more than 10 percent of the guys on the ice have their chin starps tightened correctly. What gives with that? A helmet does no good when it isnt on your head and I see helmets go flying off all of the time……. Please, someone who plays hockey explain this to me.
This is not a result of improper helmet use. This is a result of one player putting the shoulder into another’s head. That is not a “good hit”. It is a stupid hit.
The actual injury is an accident. But it is caused by wreckless play, combined with not caring whether your opponent gets hurt.
At the pro level such wrecklessness and uncaring attitude is encouraged because it is a potential route to the NHL.
It is fruitless to punish the individual player, though you must. The actual style of play is rewarded, so even if one wreckless player is suspended for life, there will be another ready to play the same style- because it is encouraged by management.
Managemnt has nothing to lose. The wreckless style player brings excitement, sells tickets and beer. If the player ends up suspended, no trouble, just get another one, there are plenty more.
Until having a player in that style actually hurts the management’s pocketbook somehow (what if a home game, or two or three were cut from the penalized teams schedule– lost tickets, beer sales, etc.) it is going to happen over and over.
Focussing on this one individual is fruitless. It almost isn’t the individual wreckless player’s fault. Managment has him on the team, pays him, puts him on the ice— it is managment that has decided to make his style part of the product. And so what if he gets suspended. Tthere are dozens ready to pursue the same high-risk reckless game for every one that is suspended.
It was a clean hit. The guy that got hit was not wearing his equipment properly. All the damage was a result of his helmet coming off immediately following the hit, his bare head then contacted the glass and boards. He also did nothing to brace for the hit but turn his back on the guy.
i live in kitchener .. the issue here is not did fanelli take the hit properly, The issue is the intent to injure, which one can see by the speed liambas approached fanelli. Their are hundreds of examples of disastrous hits behind the net.. and this is not often the result. its obvious fanelli was screened by his goalie and did not see the check coming, so liambas moving at that speed towards him shows an intent to injure. u cant crush someones skull and call it roughing.
But it was a clean hit. Even if there was intent to injure, he did it cleanly with his shoulder. Fanelli turned away from the hit, like you are NEVER supposed to, and was not aware of his surroundings while someone (Liambas) finished a clean hit with his shoulder on someone who had control of a puck. And he stopped his strides with plenty of time early enough to not get a charging.
On liambas’s side, yes, it was a rough hit. But it was clean. Which is the entire point of all of this uproar. The hit was worsened by the lack of a properly worn helment and the lack of taking the hit correctly.
Get a life you clearly have nothing better to do but comment on things your know nothing about, this is about the hit and question not hitting in hockey. you just like to post your ignorant opinions online because no one listens to you when you say it in person.. go watch long distance swimming
Hi, folks…
…seeing that may I remind you that this wasn’t a foul but passive euthanasia?
Hope, Fanelli will on the mend soon.
Greetings from Germany, sAndele
Fuck you anarchist motherfuckers. This is the type of shit that sadly defines punk ass hockey. You bitches love this shit like fake ass wrestling. And don’t get me stated on the punches that go down. That stuff is encouraged. But when you look at football, a guy can’t even endzone dance anymore. But you faggots in hockey can go from Wayne Gretzsky to Ali in the same sport and get away with it. Fuck you!!!!
Thanks for that. It’s really a breath of fresh air to see a incoherent, pointless string of profanities in the midst of a (mostly) civil forum discussing Liambas’ hit on Fanelli. To be honest, I’m not sure what you’re so angry about, but you might want to get that checked out before you have an aneurysm. And, while you’re at it, maybe take some time to learn how to use the entire English language, as opposed to just the foul and offensive parts. Douchebag.
I played for quite a while, though it was in Sweden (as I am sewedish). I agree with the people saying that the hit was finnished cleanly. I also agree with the argument that, if the helmet had been properly used, this outcome could have been avoided to some degree.
However, Liambas picked up speed from mid-rink and put his full speed and weight into the tackle. This, to me shows a disregard for the other players in the game and an intention to take Fanelli out of the game. He could just as well looped and given him a passing tackle to take him out of that particular play. He made a concius decission and should pay for it.
Suspend him for a set amount of time is my view.
To the Fanelli family: I wish your son has a speedy and full recovery from his injuries.
/Love the game, play it right!
The kid was 16 he should be wearing a full face mask not a half shield. I don’t really understand why that isn’t a rule in the OHL. If he actually had his helmet on properly this might have been avoided. It was a clean hard hit.
Whats next if say someone in the NFL hits someone in the chest and the person dies are we going to suspend him to? He didn’t take a cheap shot to the head with an elbow or anything like that it was a clean check and unfortunately the outcome was bad. It is a CONTACT SPORT!
Wow, I think the dude should suspended he sucks shit.
kthnks.
bye
I know this story has long since gone away but on the off chance someone see’s this then I have a question…
Why are so many people calling it a clean hit, “well except for maybe the boarding?” Did I miss something, how many rules does he have to break before it’s a dirty hit. Boarding is against the rules because of the increased risk of injury, so how is this NOT a dirty hit??
This is not a clean hit … doesnt matter weather the elbow was low or not, he just went for his head and nothing else ! this is #1 why its not a clean hit … #2 is, that all hits from behind into the boards a so fuckin ugly and dangerous … and that defenetly was from behind ….. he never wanted to have the puck …
hope they suspend him for the rest of his life !!!
This is not a perfectly clean hit, but it is in no way worthy of a permanent ban.
The first thing you’re taught in hockey is to keep your head up. And players need to realize that there’s a reason helmets are mandatory and you should wear it properly. Fanelli didn’t have his helmet on properly and he had his head down.
Liambas is having his junior career (whether he is any good or not is irrelevant) taken away from him because Fanelli can’t wear a helmet properly or keep his head up. It was maybe a headshot, it was definitely boarding, and it was probably worth a suspension of some sort.. but not a permanent ban. Yeah, it was a dirty hit, but Fanelli made it way worse than it had to be.