On Tuesday, authorities in the United Kingdom reported the arrest in connection with the death of Adam Johnson, a 29-year-old hockey player from Hibbing, Minnesota.
Although the suspect’s identity remains unconfirmed by officials, it is known that hockey player Matt Petgrave was the skater responsible for the accidental injury to Adam Johnson’s neck with his skate-blade during a game last month. Subsequently, South Yorkshire police issued an update, revealing that the suspect has been released on bail pending further investigation.
In the 2010-11 and 2011–12 seasons, he played with the Owen Sound Attack, and midway through the 2011–12 season, he transferred to the Oshawa Generals, where he played until 2013. With the Sound Attack, he recorded 62 points in 98 games across two seasons, and for the Generals he achieved 70 points in 78 games across two seasons. In 2011, he was the Player of the Week in the Ontario Hockey League.
Between 2013 and 2017, in college, he played for the University of New Brunswick. From 2016 to 2021, he played for a number of teams in the United States and Canada. He was named an ECHL All-Star during the 2018 season.
Petgrave spent the majority of the 2019–20 season with the Brampton Beast. In 41 appearances with Brampton, Petgrave totaled 33 points with seven goals and 26 assists, and had a plus-minus of five.
In December 2020, he signed with the Florida Everblades.
In 2021-22, he played a season in Slovakia for HK Spisska Nova Ves, and was the second most penalized player in the league. In 2021-22, he played nine games in the Czech Republic for HC Dynamo Pardubice. Since 2022, he has played for the Sheffield Steelers in the UK. In the 2022–2023 season, he was the most penalized player in the EIHL.
On October 28, 2023, Adam Johnson of the Nottingham Panthers sustained a fatal injury after the blade of Petgrave’s left skate cut Johnson’s neck during a game. An investigation was opened into the death by the South Yorkshire Police. Former NHL player Sean Avery assessed the kick as intentional, but not an attempt at murder. Johnson’s teammate Westin Michaud said that Petgrave’s actions “were unintentional and anyone suggesting otherwise is mistaken.”
On November 13, 2023, Petgrave received a standing ovation at his team’s first home game since the incident, albeit Petgrave did not feature in his team’s roster for the game.
