On March 22, 1989, Clint Malarchuk took a skate to his neck that caused him to lose over a third of his blood. He would return to the ice just ten days after it happened, but besides the scar, one main thing remained.
"After the accident I really struggled with PTSD" Malarchuk said.
That struggle would lead to him attempting to take his own life in 2008. The self-inflicted gunshot wound led to a bullet being permanently lodged in his head.
Tuesday, having faced his PTSD, Malarchuk spoke to the Niagara University hockey team about the misconceptions with mental illness.
"I'm out here trying to, you know, open the conversation and say 'Hey, it's ok to get help'" Malarchuk said.
Niagara University men's hockey coach Jason Lammers saw Malarchuk's speech as an opportunity to teach his players that they should not follow the stigma associated with hockey players.
"It's really hard, you're supposed to be this big, tough, burly hockey player and at the end of the day we probably need help."
