Tragic Details About Hockey's Biggest Legends

It's not all that surprising that ice hockey, the only sport where fights are not only allowed but often celebrated, has seen its fair share of tragedy. Any game that physically punishing is going to see some scary injuries, downward spirals, and generally strange behavior. Even outside of issues related to on-ice activities, plenty of players have their own sad stories. Some have lost loved ones in tragic ways, while others ended up in distressing situations by no fault of their own.

Despite many of these athletes being a hockey Hall of Famer, a surefire future Hall of Famer, or a particularly notorious enforcer, their lives haven't escaped adversity and misfortune. Here are tragic details about some of the most legendary hockey players. 

It's not often someone is both one of the all-time greats and one of the biggest what-ifs. Then again, Mario Lemieux spent his entire career defying explanation. Lemieux was a unique talent, and his all-time great career numbers would have been better if not for persistent health issues.

In the early '90s, Lemieux developed back problems and suffered from a rare bone disease, as per the AP, and missed big chunks of the regular season during Pittsburgh's back-to-back Stanley Cup wins. He was healthy by 1992 and had a historically hot start — breaking Wayne Gretzky's single season scoring records were on the table. Then, as documented on NHL.com, tragedy struck on January 12: Lemieux was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma. The world's best hockey player saw both his career and life in jeopardy. He left the team and faced two months of radiation treatment.

Miraculously, he had his final treatment the morning of March 2, flew out to Philadelphia to rejoin his team at an away game, and scored a goal and assist, as NHL.com details. (He also got a standing ovation from Philadelphia Flyers fans, which might be more remarkable.) Lemieux also won the Art Ross Trophy that year for most points, despite only playing 60 games.

Even though he continued to play at the highest level imaginable, injuries and exhaustion from his treatment took their toll. He sat out a season and retired for three years before pushing his body as far as it could go. He attempted to make a comeback in 2000, but continued health issues, including a heart problem, sidelined him after only a few seasons. 

There's a strong case to be made that Erik Karlsson — with two Norris trophies and a half dozen All-Star Game appearances to his name — was the best defenseman of the 2010s. He also spent four years as captain of the Ottawa Senators.

Then 2018 happened. It was a bizarre season for the Senators, but an especially tragic one for Karlsson. In late March, Erik and his wife Melinda Karlsson revealed via social media that their son was stillborn. In June, the Ottawa Citizen broke that Melinda filed for an order of protection against Monika Caryk — the girlfriend of Senators forward Mike Hoffman. Melinda claimed that Caryk "uttered numerous statements wishing my unborn child dead" and said that Caryk threatened both her and Erik. She further claimed that Caryk "posted over 1,000 negative and derogatory statements about me ..."

Of particular note was a nasty comment on an Instagram post about the stillbirth, which alleged Melinda's use of pain killers being a cause of the tragedy. Caryk and Hoffman denied the accusations, but court records seen by the Ottawa Citizen revealed that the wives of multiple Senators players said Caryk was obsessed with and cyberbullying Melinda for months. According to The Score, the case was ultimately dismissed.

Jaromir Jagr has excelled at hockey for over three decades and proven that concepts like "aging" just don't apply to some people.

From the mid '90s to about 2000, Jagr also had a huge gambling problem. Sports Illustrated obtained documents showing that he owed more than half a million dollars to CaribSport, a Belize-based betting site. Jagr had a line of credit with the site, and a plan to pay off the debt. He eventually stopped paying, and the site's owner — improbably named William Caesar — pressured him by leaking a story to a webzine.

Jagr paid up, but not before some negative press attention. A Washington Post article revealed that he was a regular at several casinos in Las Vegas and had a private baccarat table at Caesars Atlantic City. Jagr told the Post that "this was all taken care of in 1999 ... It wasn't smart. I made a mistake."

Several years later, offshore gambling magnate Steve Budin revealed in his book, "Bets, Drugs, and Rock & Roll" (via New York Magazine), that Jagr was a customer of his. "The guy lost just about every bet he ever made with us," he claimed. "For over a year straight, he'd do nothing but pay us. Ten thousand a game, seven, eight games a week." Budin also claims that Jagr would call in bets from the team locker room and would occasionally show up late for warm ups because he wanted confirmation.

Donald Brashear is one of the most notorious enforcers in hockey history. Over a 16 season career, he racked up 2,634 penalty minutes, as per ESPN, and was a feared fighter. Much has been written of several tragic incidents from his playing days and retirement, including his on-ice assault by Marty McSorely (via ABC News) and his money problems, as per the Montreal Gazette, in recent years. But perhaps the most tragic part of his life was his upbringing, as detailed in a Washington Post profile.

Brashear's father, Johnny Brashear, was a violent alcoholic. "If Donald didn't stop crying," his mother, Nicole Gauthier, told the Post, "his dad would grab him by the arm and throw him across the room. He was 6 months old when that happened." Johnny would drunkenly beat Donald before his son was 2. Gauthier eventually escaped the marriage but left Donald behind. Gauthier claimed her new husband, Gerard Roy, was too prejudiced to accept the fact that Donald was also biracial.

Donald reunited with his mother and stepfather when he was around 7 but was also abused there: Roy forced Donald to sleep in a different room than the rest of the family and tied a plastic bag around his waist to contain his bedwetting. Donald soon ended up in the foster care system. Roy denied any racism but admitted that he forced Donald to sleep in a bag, saying "it saved a mattress." Donald Brashear cut off contact with most of his family.

If you or someone you know is dealing with domestic abuse, you can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233. You can also find more information, resources, and support at their website.

Doug Harvey is probably the best defenseman the game ever saw, pre-Bobby Orr. Even so, he's seldom mentioned in the same breath as other greats — likely in part due to his issues with alcoholism and mental illness during his post-playing days.

Montreal sportswriter Red Fisher notes in "All Roads Lead to Hockey," by William T. Boyd, that Harvey was only a casual drinker during his playing days. "It was after hockey his drinking picked up because he had nothing else to do — nothing could replace hockey in his life." He also dealt with bipolar disorder, and had a hard time holding down a job, even in hockey.

Mark Howe recalled in his book, "Gordie Howe's Son," that one day in the early '80s, he and teammate Dave Keon were walking down the street in Montreal when they found Harvey sleeping on the street. The two pooled $500, brought Harvey to a hotel, and told the clerk to let him stay until the $500 ran out. Former player/coach John Paris Jr. described his experiences with Harvey in his book "They Called Me Chocolate Rocket," speaking highly of Harvey but also noting that he was often disheveled and occasionally smelled of alcohol.

Harvey died in 1989 of cirrhosis of the liver, after spending a year in the hospital getting it treated, as per his UPI obituary.

Terry Sawchuk was one of the best goalies to ever play the game and held the league shutout record for half a century. But his tragic story, which he laid out himself in Maclean's in 1959, is just as much a part of his legend.

Terry grew up poor. Mike Sawchuk, his older brother and a goalie himself, died at age 17 of a heart issue. Another brother, Roger Sawchuk, died of a fever. Terry injured his right arm in a rugby game when he was 12. He hid the injury, which resulted in a mangled arm that was two inches shorter than his left.

He estimated that he had over 400 stitches and 60 bone chips during his career, most of it before goalie masks were common. He was eventually forced to wear a mask, but Terry's son, Jerry Sawchuk, told Vintage Detroit that "when a shot hit my dad in the mask, it would actually cut a square or circle in his face." He also had a bad back from leaning over in the crease, and a serious case of mono almost forced him to retire. Terry also played in the most stressful era for goaltending, where teams employed one goalie, and injuries meant a short stitch break. As such, Terry had many nervous breakdowns.

In 1970, he and teammate Ron Stewart got into a drunken argument that resulted in internal injuries that put Terry in the hospital. He died of a blood clot after several surgeries.