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The state's chief medical examiner announced on Monday, Jan. 10 that Teddy Balkind, a 10th-grader at St. Luke’s School in New Canaan, who died on Thursday, Jan. 6, during a game died from an "incised wound of the neck," and the incident was officially ruled as accidental.
Balkind, age 16, was killed around 5 p.m., during a junior varsity game at the Brunswick Upper School in Greenwich.
The tragic accident occurred when Balkind fell to the ice, and another player who was near him was unable to stop, and the two collided, said Greenwich Police Captain Mark E. Zuccerella.
Balkind, whose neck was injured in the incident, was rushed to Greenwich Hospital where he was pronounced dead.
His father had been present at the game.
In an Instagram post made more than a year ago, Balkind said playing on the team was the "best": “It’s been a great 8 years with the winter club and it ended in the best way possible#state champs."
Touching tributes have poured in for the young man including a Twitter post from Brunswick School where the game was being played.
"One shift. One period. One game at a time. It's the hockey way. The way our team can honor the life of Teddy Balkind. We hold the Balkind family and St. Luke’s in our thoughts. As we remember Teddy, we'll always strive to do our best. One shift. One period. One game at a time."
Tributes also came from professional hockey teams including the NHL who said: “The National Hockey League mourns the tragic passing of Teddy Balkind, a member of the hockey family lost too soon."
In addition to hockey tributes, various organizations Balkind have also honored the popular young teen.
Fellow campers at Camp Awosting in Litchfield County created a hashtag #moreteddy and a video remembering him and parishioners at St. Aloysius Roman Catholic Church prayed the rosary for Balkind, who is Jewish.
There will be a private service held at Temple Shalom in Norwalk, and a celebration of his life will be held at a date to be determined
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