04/18/24
September 30, 2003
The day Jay apologizes for his recklessness,: Atlanta Thrashers' Dany Heatley, with teammate Dan Snyder riding shotgun, slices his black Ferrari in two while doing 80 mph. Heatley busted his jaw, but Snyder wasn't so lucky, having suffered a skull fracture.
Local Coverage with photo. Having seen the picture, they are both very lucky to be alive. I heard on local sportstalk on the way in to work this morning that Heatley is in stable condition and that Snyder had just come out of surgery and is in serious condition.
posted by trox at 08:30 AM on September 30, 2003
Damn - I really like Heatley and hope in the end he isn't responsible for the end of a teammates career - that'll shatter him. 22 yeard olds and Ferrari's don't mix.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 08:45 AM on September 30, 2003
That sucks. Heatley is one of the best kids playing in the NHL right now, and I hope this doesn't ruin his career. More importantly, I hope Snyder recovers. He's just a kid too, really.
posted by Samsonov14 at 08:48 AM on September 30, 2003
trox, thanks for the local post! Heatley is the man. I've never seen such a young player dominate a game, even without crushing checks and puck moving magic. He just plays above the rest (just ask a Rangers fan), and does all the little things right in addition to his flash. Here's to hoping this is a wake-up call for a supposed leader. And there should be some kind of special Ferrari driving test. Anything that weighs 2 tons(thats a guess) and can accelerate like a rock from a sling-shot should lawfully require stringent operating rules, just like a tractor-trailer license.
posted by garfield at 09:02 AM on September 30, 2003
Joe Thornton was slated for the cover of the NHL 2004 video game until he had his little run-in with the law. They replaced him with Heatley, and now this happens. I’m not so sure being featured on an EA Sports box is a good thing. Maybe this is the Sports Illustrated curse for the new millenium.
posted by Samsonov14 at 09:31 AM on September 30, 2003
Interesting theory Samsonov. Last year's cover boy was Jarome Iginla. Jarome cracked a thumb early in the season (in a fight with Bill Guerin), leading to a disappointing year. The year before it was Lemieux on the box, coinciding with the Penguins' financial woes perhaps?
posted by Succa at 10:00 AM on September 30, 2003
Samsonov, Forget the SI jinx ... it's like the Madden jinx.
posted by Mike McD at 10:36 AM on September 30, 2003
"Heatley has received five seperate charges resulting from the accident, the most serious of which is 'serious injury by a vehicle' - a felony. If convicted of this, Heatley faces between one and 15 years in prison. He also received four misdemeanor charges: wreckless driving, driving too fast for conditions, driving on the wrong side of the road and striking a fixed object. Heatley was required to give blood samples to be tested for drugs and alcohol, which is standard practice for accidents of this nature."
posted by Succa at 10:41 AM on September 30, 2003
(I must point out the spelling gaffe..."wreckless driving"? Apparently not.)
posted by Succa at 10:42 AM on September 30, 2003
I've had a skull fracture very similar to this, from an auto accident. If he has the same surgery I did, to releave the pressure of the skull pressing on the brain, he could be out for quite awhile.
posted by corpse at 10:56 AM on September 30, 2003
Damn!!! Your ID takes on a whole new meaning.
posted by garfield at 11:26 AM on September 30, 2003
The blood-alcohol levels are in, and they're negligible... so there's no worry for the DUI. But I'd be worried about the reckless driving charges anyway.
posted by mkn at 05:35 PM on September 30, 2003
Legally, he'll be fine. Nothing a good lawyer can't argue down to $$$$, community service and remedial driving lessons.
posted by garfield at 10:09 PM on September 30, 2003
I wouldn't be so sure garfield. I heard on the radio this morning that Snyder had died.
posted by trox at 08:09 AM on October 06, 2003
trox, I hear ya. Completely different circumstances now.
posted by garfield at 09:31 AM on October 06, 2003
Those two players are lucky to be alive at all after splitting a car in half.