Potvin death ruled a suicide
Marc Potvin

Marc Potvin

Canadian Press

2/10/2006 12:04:50 PM

KALAMAZOO, Mich. (AP) - The death of former NHL player Marc Potvin has been ruled a suicide.

The 38-year-old Potvin used a belt to hang himself from a shower curtain rod, police Sgt. Scott Merlo said Friday.

Potvin, coach of the Adirondack Frostbite of the United Hockey League, was found dead Jan. 13 in his Kalamazoo hotel room just hours before his team was to play against the Kalamazoo Wings.

Authorities had ruled out foul play, but were awaiting toxicology test results before announcing a cause of death. The results came back Wednesday, and the medical examiner ruled the death a suicide, Merlo said.

Tests showed that Potvin's blood-alcohol content was 0.15 per cent, nearly twice the legal limit for drunken driving in Michigan.



Potvin lived in Glens Falls, N.Y., and in North Canton, Ohio, with his wife, Maria, and their two children. He was in his second full season with Adirondack.

The Detroit Red Wings selected him in the ninth round of the 1986 draft. He played pro hockey for nine seasons, including six in the NHL with Detroit, Los Angeles, Hartford and Boston.

Potvin was a second cousin of NHL Hall of Famer Denis Potvin, a three-time Norris Trophy winner who led the New York Islanders to four Stanley Cups during the 1970s and '80s.