Sitting in mattress later that evening, Davis held the puck that had almost hit her son, Nasir. She thought of how badly he may’ve been damage if the fan had not helped and later posted on TikTok in hopes of monitoring him down.
“I owe that man lunch or dinner, one other thanks,” Davis mentioned within the video, “ … as a result of I can not think about my child getting hit with that hockey puck.”
The video, which has acquired greater than 4 million views, shortly reached Andrew Podolak, who Davis mentioned wrote in a TikTok message that he was glad he protected her son.
Davis, Podolak and Nasir reunited at one other American Hockey League recreation Saturday, after they dropped the puck earlier than the Cleveland Monsters performed the Laval Rocket. Davis, 33, instructed The Washington Publish she was glad to hug Podolak and thank him for what she mentioned would possibly’ve been a lifesaving transfer.
Davis, Nasir and her pal met Podolak after they sat subsequent to him, a number of rows from the ice, Thursday evening at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. A victory would safe the Columbus Blue Jackets’ affiliate a spot within the playoffs.
Simply over a minute earlier than the Monsters received, Davis’s pal held up her cellphone to document the gamers’ scuffles and celebrations on the ice. That’s when a Cleveland participant deflected a go, hitting the puck into the air.
Davis mentioned she didn’t have time to react. Podolak, sitting on the opposite aspect of Nasir, leaped up and held out his arm, altering the puck’s trajectory and sending it over Nasir’s head. Nasir didn’t even see the puck, Davis mentioned, however ice chips landed in his hair.
“The youngsters behind us, they picked up the puck and gave it to my son,” Davis mentioned. “And, you recognize, I held the puck up and realized what he simply escaped.”
Davis thanked Podolak, requested him to pose for a photograph with Nasir and joked he must be a goaltender. However as the sport ended, she was nonetheless processing how shut the puck had come to her son’s face. She mentioned her head throbbed and her abdomen ached as she left the world.
The following day, she known as the world in hopes of figuring out the fan. Whereas workers requested for extra time to find him, she posted a TikTok video early Saturday morning that includes the photograph of Nasir and Podolak. She doubted she would discover him by means of the social media app.
When she awakened about eight hours later, Davis mentioned the video had gone viral. She mentioned Podolak messaged her, and Davis responded by saying she would purchase him playoff tickets later this month.
On Saturday afternoon, the Monsters invited Davis, Nasir and Podolak to their recreation that evening. When the trio arrived on the area, cameras from native TV stations adopted them as Davis and Podolak hugged. They greeted gamers earlier than they entered the ice and recounted Podolak’s block with reporters.
“I had a few different youngsters sitting behind me as properly, so I simply tried leaping in entrance of it,” Podolak instructed Fox 8 Information.
Watching the sport from the stadium’s front-row seats, Davis was nervous one other puck would fly towards Nasir. So the 4-year-old sat between the adults — in case Podolak’s heroics have been required once more.
Whereas Davis mentioned she nonetheless has “PTSD” from the incident, Podolak’s efforts helped make Thursday a memorable evening for Nasir for a distinct motive. He was so excited followers gave him the puck that flew by him, he has since been holding it whereas he sleeps.