Edmonton Oilers forward Colby Cave is in serious condition. He has been placed in a medically-induced coma and admitted to critical care at Sunnybrook Hospital in Toronto. The centre suffered bleeding in his brain overnight. The team announced the news early Tuesday afternoon.
#Oilers & @Condors forward Colby Cave has been placed in a medically-induced coma & admitted to the critical care unit at Sunnybrook Hospital in Toronto after suffering a brain bleed overnight. Please keep Colby & his wife Emily in your thoughts & prayers at this time.
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) April 7, 2020
Colby Cave Hospitalized
Cave was a depth contributor for Edmonton in 2019-20. The 25-year-old scored just one goal in 11 games while averaging 9:39 per contest. He was more productive with the team’s AHL affiliate in Bakersfield where Cave scored 11 goals and 23 points in 44 games. Overall, he was a cheap fourth-line option.
Cave originally joined the league as a member of the Boston Bruins. He only played 23 games before Edmonton claimed him off waivers in early 2019. Edmonton used Cave more in 2018-19 when he played in 33 games and contributed two goals and three points. Cave was also a physical presence with 51 hits and 13 blocks. He only had a cap hit of $675,000 so his production was fine for that price. He would have been re-signed as a restricted free agent and either given the chance to play more or traded to another team. Cave isn’t an NHL scoring threat but most teams can use a 6’1″, 200-pound centre.
What This Means for the Future
Nothing matters except Cave’s health at this point. Anything involving a player’s brain is extremely serious. We do not know how this situation will play out so the best anyone can do right now is hope that Cave and his family are ok. Currently, all people can do is send their thoughts his way.
2019-20 has been a challenging year for health in the NHL. Every season has its notable injuries but this season saw Oskar Lindblom diagnosed with cancer. Cave and Lindblom serve as reminders that sports like hockey only serve as distractions from real life. There are far more important things in the world like health and safety. We all here at LastWord hope that Cave will be alright and have a speedy recovery.
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