Mental Health: Bigger Than Hockey
By Chris Baker
Mental health is tenuous. If you or someone you love are struggling, you are not alone. This post meant to draw attention to mental health issues, and celebrate the actions Marc-Andre Fleury, who showed courage in addressing his struggle. Please, if you are experiencing mental health issues, seek the help of friends or family AND a medical professional. Resources and trained professionals are out there.
Marc-Andre Fleury is one of the best goalies in the NHL. We as hockey fans can at least agree on that. Fleury is a 3 time Stanley Cup champ, Olympic gold medalist, Vezina and Jennings trophy winning goaltender. His trophy case has less space than all of ours combined. But this stellar goalie is not immune to the very real struggles with mental health and matters bigger than the sport of hockey.
After a 6-5 loss to the Buffalo Sabres on January 7th, Fleury broke down.
Never seen a goalie beat himself up like Fleury. He’s slamming things, apologizing to teammates, cursing, saying 5 goals should be a win every time
— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) January 8, 2023
I can tell you, MAF has been dealing with a deep personal matter the last week and is leaving #mnwild tonight til Tuesday
The matters that caused Fleury’s reaction will, hopefully, never be known. That is up to Marc-Andre Fleury to disclose or not. As it should be, this is a personal matter to be dealt with by him, his family, and whatever professional assistance he seeks.
The hockey world does not need to know. Furthermore, what Fleury did to address these issues is inconsequential.
We as fans, and human beings, can however take away some hope from his teammates encouragement, and his fortitude to take a break from something that was causing pain to refocus on what is most important.
The person behind the mask.
If you are experiencing mental health struggles, please know you are not alone. Know too that you can take a step away, seek help and support.
Professionals can provide care. Life is certainly more than hockey, and the courage to remember that is something we should applaud Marc-Andre Fleury for recognizing.
If you or someone you love is experience mental health struggles, seek help from your doctor, or a mental help professional.
SAMHSA’s National Helpline is a free, confidential, 24/7, 365-day-a-year treatment referral and information service (in English and Spanish) for individuals and families facing mental and/or substance use disorders.