Former Red Wing Jiri Fischer measures life, Shocks and Saves success

As a retired 44-year-old NHL player, Jiri Fischer measures his life in different ways.

Maybe it’s the 20 years since he died. Or maybe it’s the lives saved since he lived.

But his favorite method of measuring his post-cardiac arrest life is much closer to his heart. It is the 2 ½-year old boy named Jakub ignoring his father’s speech in favor of a balloon animal and the toddler named Dasha wearing a pink Fischer jersey.

It is his 18-year-old son Lukas, who plays for the Sarnia Sting and was a second-round pick by the St. Louis Blues in the 2024 NHL Draft.

“Lukas was born 10 months after my cardiac arrest … things were right, and stars were aligned,” Fischer said. “He is the captain of the Sarnia Sting, playing against Saginaw. And he’s here because the Red Wings saved my life.

“In the front row there are two more little ones. Three of my children were born after my cardiac arrest only because my life was saved by the Red Wings.”

Fischer and Dr. Peter Fattal competed in their 17th Shocks and Saves hockey game Saturday at the Dow Event Center, adding one more measurement to Fischer’s post-arrest life.

“Looking back 20 years, a lot of things have happened, and it’s humbling,” Fischer said. “I’ve been blessed. Some people survive a cardiac arrest, and it’s a year or two. I’ve had 20 so far. The Red Wings saved my life. Because of that, I have my wife (Jenni) and two children here as part of this event. Because of that, I can watch my older boys, how they’re carving their path as young men.

“Twenty years is a big number, a great number. I’ve been blessed.”

Fischer, 44, starred for the Red Wings as a 6-foot-5 defenseman, helping Detroit claim the Stanley Cup in 2002. But on Nov. 21, 2005, the Red Wings took on the Nashville Predators, a game that became part of NHL history for the wrong reason. It was the first NHL game in history canceled because of an injury.

Fischer’s injury was not the typical hockey trauma, where a couple of stitches suffice. Fischer suffered a cardiac arrest during the game, collapsing on the bench.

Fischer was unconscious for six minutes before Dr. Tony Colucci used CPR and an automated external defibrillator (AED) to resuscitate him. Fischer experienced two more cardiac arrests within the next month, ending his hockey career at 25 years old.

“The NHL evolved, and the guidelines changed because Tony Colucci was very proactive about what needed to be done,” Fischer said. “The Red Wings were doing it, even though it wasn’t required at the time … and it saved my life.

“Doctors need to sit within 40 feet of the bench, even if they’re the most expensive seats. An AED needs to be part of the mandatory equipment. Everybody has to be trained for CPR. An ambulance has to have full access as close to the locker room as possible. The NHL wasn’t demanding to have cardiac screening. That all changed after my cardiac arrest. I got on everybody’s radar. It became important to be prepared.”

Through the Pulse3 Foundation and Central Michigan University, the mid-Michigan area has become one of the most-prepared areas in the state.

Revenue from the game has provided more than 400 AEDs in the area, AEDs that have saved 20 lives. Money has also helped train more than 20,000 people in CPR. And more than a dozen area schools have achieved Michigan HeartSafe School status.

“This region was very poor at things that are very simple,” Fattal said. “But the number of people learning CPR, the number of AEDs all went up after Shocks and Saves. Now we’re one of the highest in the state. What we’ve done in the past 17 years has raised the bar.”

It keeps Fischer coming back, along with his friends.

Saturday’s game included Jakub Kindle (Red Wings, Florida Panthers), Chris Thorburn (Saginaw Spirit, Buffalo Sabres, Pittsburgh Penguins, Atlanta Thrashers, Winnipeg Jets, St. Louis Blues), Brad Stuart (San Jose Sharks, Calgary Flames, Los Angeles Kings, Detroit Red Wings), Kirk Maltby (Detroit Red Wings), Chris Tamer (U-M, Pittsburgh Penguins, New York Rangers and Atlanta Thrashers), Trevor Nill (MSU) and Jon Paul Morosi (Essexville Garber, NHL/MLB Network).

Team Shock claimed a 4-3 win over Team Saves, with Stuart scoring goals for each team.

Fischer, however, was the only Fischer on the ice this year. Previous Shocks and Saves games featured his two sons who are working their way up the hockey ladder. Braidan Simmons-Fischer has played for the United States National Team, the University of St. Thomas (Minnesota) and Adrian College (Michigan).

“Braidan played in the Shocks and Saves a couple years, and so did Lukas … those were wonderful moments,” Fischer said. “We’ll see if little Jakub will skate in it in a couple years. Those are moments that are given to me because people around me were prepared.

“This event has helped in so many ways to be better prepared. Seventeen years later, this is the safest heart-healthy community in Michigan based on the stats. That’s a great motivation for me to keep going.”