After Hockey Coach's Cardiac Arrest On Ice, Players Give Back

A hockey team raised $4,500 for a Northwell Health hospital that helped save their coach's life after he went into cardiac arrest during a game four months ago.

Kent Hitchcock, 52, of Manhasset, survived his major heart attack on the ice thanks to the first responders who arrived to the scene and the staff at Sandra Atlas Bass Heart Hospital who performed open heart surgery on him.

“The heart attack came out of nowhere,” Hitchcock said. “Next to a hospital, I was lucky this happened at a hockey rink because staff and first responders know how to use a defibrillator. They saved my life!”

He received a quadruple coronary artery bypass graft on March 7 and received follow up care at home by Heart Hospital nurse practitioners.

Hitchcock has since made a "miraculous" recovery, Northwell Health says. He was back on the ice and exercising four weeks later. Hitchcock works at a Manhattan investment bank and has three sons who also play hockey. He plays hockey and golf and regularly works out.

“Most of us have known ‘Coach Hitch’ since we were in middle school,” said Christopher Boisselle, who will be a senior at Manhasset High School in the fall. “We are so grateful for his successful heart surgery. As a team, we wanted to say thank you to the Heart Hospital for saving our coach’s life and to raise awareness about heart disease.”

In support of their coach, members of LI Edge U18 club hockey team from Manhasset High School and their family members organized a two-hour fundraiser in honor of their longtime coach's successful surgery on Sunday, July 16. The fundraiser was held at their practice hockey ring, the Port Washington Skating Center. Other nearby high schools participated in the fundraiser as well.

The hockey players offered skating lessons and offered raffle items such as a signed New York Islander jersey, hockey sticks and numerous gifts donated by local merchants. Ed Westfall, a former Islanders legend and Stanley Cup winner, also made an appearance.

“Heart disease is still the No. 1 killer in this country,” said Dr. Alan Hartman from Heart Hospital, who attended the fundraiser. “Mr. Hitchcock, who is part of a large, close-knit hockey community, has already made an impact in his circle about cardiac disease. Community events like these raise awareness even further and education always makes a difference in saving lives.”

Images via Northwell Health:

• Coach Kent Hitchcock with his players in Port Washington.
• From left: Dr. Alan Hartman, Christopher Boisselle, Kent Hitchcock and New York Islanders legend Ed Westfall.