U.S. Hockey GM Lost Vision After Accident

Poile

If you haven’t heard much from USA Hockey general manager David Poile the last two weeks, it’s because he’s been dealing with a life-altering personal issue. Just before the Olympic break in Minneapolis, he took a deflected puck from Shea Weber to the right eye and suffered a fractured nose and orbital bone and hasn’t been able to see out of his eye since. To close the wound he needed 40 stitches.

Earlier this week he gave his first public interview since the incident where he gave an update on his condition. He told the Nashville Post, “This is not a good situation. It is difficult but I have to – and want to – move on. … There’s different adjustments that [I’m] going to have to make but there’s lots of people that have lost an eye and they’re operating very well and I have to be one of them.”

He wasn’t able to travel to the Olympics due to having two eye surgeries in Minneapolis and he needed another in Nashville.  With the NHL season resuming next week, Poile should be able to resume his regular duties as GM of the Predators. He went on to say about the accident “I was clearly at the wrong place at the wrong time,” Poile said. “… The last two weeks have been hard. It’s been challenging. … I don’t think it’s anything I can’t handle. It’s just one of those things. It’s really unfortunate or, I guess you could say, unlucky. But it happened and life moves on and I’m ready for the challenge.”

There is a chance that vision could return to his eye, but in the meantime he will be fitted with glasses that provide magnification for his left eye and protection for the right. He’s also wearing a nose cast that will be able to come off in the near future.

Aside from his eye, he will have to shift his focus from the United States Olympic team to the Predators who currently sit four points out of the final playoff spot. The end of the season will fly by like a sprint and hopefully Nashville will be able to give Poile a clear view on their road to the playoffs.

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