Denna Laing is planning to sue the NHL for spinal damage suffered while playing an outdoor hockey game that was part of the NHL's Winter Classic at Gillette Stadium in Foxbourough, Mass., on Dec. 31, according to the NY Post. The incident took place while playing against the Montreal Les Canadiennes. Laing is a professional hockey player who plays for the National Women's Hockey League's Boston Pride. After stepping on a stick, Laing crashed head first into the boards and had to be taken off the ice in a stretcher. The player suffered severe spinal damage.
She has been at Massachusetts General Hospital since then, and her parents have stated that she "has limited movement of her arms and no feeling in her legs," according to the Toronto Sun. Now the 24-year-old is planning to sue. While all players signed a liability waiver before playing that day, the waiver is only valid if the rink was up to playing standards. There have been reports however, that the ice was soft when Laing was injured, according to the Sun. Boston defenseman Dennis Seidenberg claimed that one corner of the rink was "dangerous", according to Puck Daddy's Greg Wyshynski.
On Jan. 10, Denna Laing posted on her Facebook fan page a description of her day on Dec. 31 prior to the injury, and wrote that she does not regret anything and is proud of her team.
For a long time I have been looking for a new challenge. Even though I was not expecting it be this, here we go. Lets...
Posted by The Denna Laing Team on Sunday, January 10, 2016
The next day, Laing posted a video of herself publicly speaking for the first time since the injury.
Laing and her family are also planning to sue the New England Patriots, who are the owners of Gillette Stadium, the National Women's Hockey League, which is the league the Boston Pride plays in, and the Canadian Women's Hockey League, which the Montreal Les Canadiennes play in.
For updates on her condition, here is her official website which her family set up after the injury.
