Gunnison skater hospitalized

“It’s wait-and-see at the moment”

A Gunnison High School hockey player remains in a drug-induced coma at St. Mary’s Hospital in Grand Junction after receiving a head injury during a game this past weekend. But as of Tuesday, he was showing signs of improvement.

Freshman Dustin McGuinness is recovering from what is described as a “freak accident” during a game in Durango.
“He was moving a bit more this morning, and that is a good sign,” Gunnison Valley Hockey Association [GVHA] spokesperson Gary Shondeck said Tuesday morning. “We’ve been told the surgery to relieve pressure on the brain went well and the doctor was pleased but it is still a very critical situation.”
A friend of the McGuinness family, Brenda Spallone is at the hospital with the family and said they have seen some positive development. “He is breathing more on his own every day,” she said. “There is progress every day and Dustin is going in the right direction. The family is overwhelmed by all the support.”
Dustin was playing on the Gunnison Blades Midget “B” team in a tournament in Durango over the weekend. According to Shondeck, McGuinness took a check in the second period of a game against the Durango Steamers Saturday evening.
Shondeck explained that it was a freak accident.
“There was apparently about five minutes to go in the second period of the game and Dustin took a check against the boards. It was a clean check to get him off the puck. There wasn’t a penalty and no one said it was a cheap hit or anything. It was nothing out of the ordinary,” he said. “He skated off the ice to the bench and sat down and a few seconds later he went into convulsions. Luckily there was an E.R. [emergency room] doctor at the rink so he was in good hands immediately. He was transferred to the hospital and then flown to St. Mary’s in Grand Junction. He had surgery early Sunday.”
Shondeck said it was a shock to everyone. “He is a good kid,” Shondeck said. “Bad things can happen to good people and that is the case here. Everyone is upset. The Durango coach, the players, everyone.”
GVHA vice president Mark Schumacher was at the Durango tournament coaching the Bantam team but did not see the event. “No one could figure out when the incident that caused the injury took place,” he said. “There was no obvious hit that looked hard enough to cause that injury.”
A prayer service Monday evening packed the Gunnison Community Church with hundreds of people. Shondeck and Schumacher said it was standing room only in the church and a huge show of support from the community.
Spallone said the doctors at St. Mary’s are monitoring Dustin’s condition and are encouraged by his progress but plan to keep him in an induced coma until at least later this week.
An account at the Gunnison Bank and Trust has been set up to help with Dustin’s situation. Donations can be made at both the Crested Butte and Gunnison branches.