Ex-NHLer John Scott nearly lost his life after a battle with a frozen lake, that almost defeated him.

Scott was known to be involved with a lot of fights over his eight seasons in the NHL, but this was a fight that almost cost him his life. The 36-year-old fell through the ice in a lake at his home in Traverse City, Michigan.

The former enforcer spoke to Chris Kuc of The Athletic, to explain what transpired that day. Also, to explain how he was able to his escape his near death.

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Scott stated that he was attempting to clear some snow off of the lake so that his family would be able to go skating on it. But, the ice started to crack and ultimately break just as he placed his feet onto it.

The former all-star fell into the freezing water and had only one option if he wanted to get out of the water alive.

He stated that the water had to be about 20 feet deep, which is why he also couldn’t pull himself out just by using the ice around him. He also spoke about how as he able to realize the only way he was getting out of the water was by pulling himself up onto his doc.

Scott was somehow able to maneuver a piece of ice under his feet that helped hoist himself out of the water, and onto his doc above him. Luckily, Scott didn’t suffer any further health injuries after he escaped the freezing lake.

Lastly, Scott stated in his interview that he didn’t even take in what had just happened to him until he went back into his home where his family was. After the fact, he then realized how scary this event was for him.

Because of this situation, he decided to take a year off from any skating on that lake. Hopefully, to avoid any other kind of mishaps, like this one that he was lucky enough to be able to walk away from.

What This Means

This story was one that made everyone take a step back, to realize how close we all were to losing Scott. Hopefully, this news reminds everyone of how dangerous it can be sometimes to walk or skate on a frozen pond or lake.

So maybe this can be a story that helps people better understand why it's important to make sure you're always taking safety precautions if you plan to go skating.

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