The incident occurred at the Town of Oyster Bay Ice Skating Center in Bethpage. Credit: Howard Schnapp
A Massapequa High School senior collapsed from a "sudden medical event" during a hockey game Saturday night and was later pronounced dead.
Connor Kasin, 17, who was playing in a charity hockey game in honor of a Syosset High School graduate who died in a car crash last year, lost consciousness on the ice during intermission, according to Nassau County police.
At about 9 p.m. Saturday, medics and officers arrived at the Town of Oyster Bay Ice Skating Center in Bethpage, where people were performing CPR on Kasin, according to police. He was later pronounced dead at a hospital.
Massapequa schools Superintendent William Brennan described what happened as a "sudden medical event" in a letter to the community. The specifics were not immediately clear.
An outpouring of love flooded social media Sunday, with Kasin’s friends and classmates posting photos of him playing hockey, dressed up for Halloween and at a recent Friendsgiving. They tagged his jersey number, 37.
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"Rest easy Connor. You were such an incredible person to have known and truly the nicest," one friend wrote.
Kasin’s family could not be reached for comment.
Kasin was to play for Massapequa High on Sunday evening against Half Hollow Hills, one of several hockey games scheduled as part of the New York Islanders High School league, but all have been canceled, according to a message posted on the league website.
"It is with a heavy heart that we share the news of the sudden passing of one of our NYIHSHL players last evening," the message says. "Due to this tragedy, all NYIHSHL games scheduled for today are canceled. Our thoughts and prayers remain with the player's family, teammates and classmates throughout this most difficult time."
The hockey game Saturday night between Syosset and Massapequa was a memorial for Sabrina Navaretta, a 19-year-old Syosset graduate who died in Delaware, where she was studying business management. Donations from Saturday night went to a foundation started by her parents, which in part funds support to families who have lost a child.
Navaretta's parents spoke out Sunday morning after hearing the tragic news.
"Our hearts go out to Connor and his family," the couple said in a statement. "They are in our thoughts and prayers."
A profile of Kasin on the website, NCSA College Recruiting, lists him as a 6-foot-2, 195 pound left defenseman for the Long Island Sharks, a club hockey team. The site includes a six-minute YouTube link of Kasin in game action.
In a personal statement on the site, Kasin says he began playing hockey at the age of 4.
"I am an active, social, and encouraging teammate both on and off of the ice," he says in the statement. " … My goals are to get into a great college that provides me with both excellent coaching and education."
The Long Island Sharks Instagram page posted a photo of a smiling Kasin in his team uniform along with statement of condolence.
Kasin is at least the third Long Island youth to die after collapsing during a game since 2022.
Lazar LaPenna, a fourth grader at East Elementary School in Long Beach, died after suffering an epileptic seizure on April 29, 2022 while playing in a Long Beach/Lido Little League Baseball game.
On July 3, 2023, Robert Bush, 17, of Selden, collapsed on the field during football conditioning drills at Newfield High School after suffering a "cardiac event" and was removed from life support several days later.
Brennan, in the letter to district families, said there would be counseling services on the high school campus Sunday from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. and throughout the week.
"Connor was a cherished member of our school community, known for his kindness, positivity, enthusiasm, and big smile," Brennan wrote. "He had a way of bringing light and joy to those around him, and his absence will be felt deeply by all of us."
Check back for updates on this developing story.
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