High School Player Suffers "Jesse Martin Injury"

(above) Former DU player Jesse Martin is attempting to reach out to the Jablonski family

(above) Minnesota high school hockey player Jack Jablonski fractured two bones in his lower neck

Star-Tribune Video & Press Conference

Well-wishers crowded into Jack Jablonski's hospital room and lit up his Facebook and CaringBridge pages all weekend as the high school sophomore and his family awaited a prognosis on a paralyzing injury he suffered during a hockey game on Friday.

"It's a parent's worst nightmare," his father, Mike Jablonski of Minneapolis, said on Sunday in the pediatric intensive care unit at Hennepin County Medical Center. "He dropped and didn't move. Right then and there I knew that my son, that there was something seriously wrong."

Known as "Jabby" to his friends, the 16-year-old honors student, hockey forward and varsity tennis player at Benilde-St. Margaret's scored the first goal of what would be a victory for the junior varsity Red Knights against Wayzata during the Holiday Hockey Classic tournament at the St. Louis Park Recreation Center.

Jack's team was up by one goal 5 minutes and 48 seconds into the second period when he made a dash for the puck near the end boards with two Wayzata players in hot pursuit, said Chris McGowan, the Red Knights' JV coach.

McGowan said two players rammed Jablonski from behind, smashing him into the boards, and he collapsed motionless to the ice.

Jack is in critical condition with two fractured bones in his lower neck. He's unable to move his legs and has only slight movement in his hands and fingers, McGowan said.

Doctors suspect that Jack suffered a bruised spinal cord and won't speculate about his recovery until the swelling reduces, his parents said. Once that happens, surgeons expect to fuse the two broken vertebrae, they added.

Jack was in the offensive zone and was coming around the net when the two Wayzata players slammed into him, his father said. "It was just a very hard hit."

Leslie Jablonski said she feels awful for the other boys, at least one of whom knew Jack from youth leagues.

Although the Jablonskis say they have no hard feelings for the Wayzata team or its coaches, they worry that hockey coaches in general are "sending the wrong messages."

"Players are running at the other players even when they're totally defenseless," Mike Jablonski said.

Leslie Jablonski, who writes a blog called MyHockeyMama, agreed. "The checking seems to be a hot issue. This can be avoided," she said. "In two seconds, our lives just changed. All of our lives changed -- even theirs," she added, gesturing toward a group of visiting teens.

"We just want to make sure this doesn't happen again. And if they keep playing the game the way it is, there's going to be more attacks in situations like this."