Sunshine Coast, B.C., man suffers spinal injury during non-competitive hockey game
41-year-old Michal Habetin wasn't able to move anything below his shoulders after the injury
A Sunshine Coast man has suffered a life-changing spinal injury after a collision during a non-competitive hockey game.
Michal Habetin, 41, was playing hockey on Jan. 9 with his friends, much like he did every Friday night in Gibsons, B.C., when the game took a tragic turn.
Habetin and another player collided on the ice.
His fiancé Taryn Beauvais received a phone call from one of his teammates telling her to meet them at the hospital in Sechelt.
“My whole body was in pure panic,” Beauvais said. “I’ve never shaken so violently in my life.”
The couple was flown to Vancouver General Hospital that evening, where Habetin has been in the intensive care unit since.
“He wasn't able to move anything below his shoulders, had no function or feeling,” Beauvais said.
Their entire community is coming together to support them with more than $330,000 raised for them through an online fundraiser. A hockey game in Gibsons on Jan. 31 hopes to raise more funds for his recovery.
“If he wasn't such an amazing human, we wouldn't be getting such a huge outpouring of support and love,” Beauvais said.
Habetin was passionate about hockey, playing multiple nights a week on three different teams on the Sunshine Coast and he would also work on skating skills on the weekends.
Close friend and teammate James Hamilton co-created the fundraiser. He said the accident could have happened to any one of them.
“I've seen that play a thousand times … and it was nothing, and now it's changed everything,” he said.
Beauvais said it was a freak accident.
“Then [they] just fell into the boards and I think all their weight just kind of went on … the angle of the neck, the wrong way, and he's overextended his neck,” Beauvais said.
The road to recovery is expected to be long. Beauvais needed to find a temporary place to stay in Vancouver as the couple lives in Sechelt.
“Unfortunately, with spinal injuries, there’s not a lot of answers right away,” Beauvais said.
Together, the couple owns a construction company on the Sunshine Coast and was in the process of building a home.
“There's really no promises anyone can make, his recovery is going to be so long, and he won't be able to immediately return to do the things he's always loved,” Beauvais said.
Sunny Coast Electric Ltd donated $10,000 to the couple, and owner Brad Scott said it was the least he could do for their good friends.
“They would be the first people to help others that they love in a time where help is needed most,” Scott said.
Beauvais is grateful for the community's support, as it allows her to focus on Habetin’s recovery.
“Say 'I love you' to your partner before they leave the door, because life can just really change in a heartbeat,” she said.
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