Mom: Belak depressed
THE MOTHER of former NHL player Wade Belak said yesterday that her son had suffered from depression before his death.
THE MOTHER of former NHL player Wade Belak said yesterday that her son had suffered from depression before his death.
Belak, 35, an enforcer who had played with five NHL teams before retiring in March, was found dead Wednesday in Toronto. According to several reports, he hanged himself.
"I think he was taking control of that [depression]," Lorraine Belak said in a phone interview from Nashville. "He didn't talk about it all the time or a lot."
Private services will be tomorrow in Nashville. She said the cause of death would be released in the coming days.
She said she spoke to her son on Sunday and there was nothing out of the ordinary with his mood or with the conversation.
She said the family can't "wrap our heads around" his sudden death.
"He was a great husband, a great father, a wonderful son and we were so proud of him," she said tearfully.
Belak is the third NHL enforcer found dead since May.
The body of 27-year-old Rick Rypien, of the Jets, was discovered in August at his home in Alberta after a police official said a call was answered for a "sudden and non-suspicious" death. Former Rangers enforcer Derek Boogaard died in May at 28 because of an accidental mix of alcohol and the painkiller oxycodone.
Golf *
Rory McIlroy shot a 2-under-par 69 to share the lead, at 8-under, after two rounds of the European Masters in Switzerland with Gary Boyd, Simon Dyson and Jamie Donaldson.
* Troy Matteson shot a 6-under 65 to take a one-shot lead over No. 1 player Luke Donald after one round of the the PGA Tour's Deutsche Bank Championship at the TPC Boston in Norton, Mass.
Sport Stops *
UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez will defend his title against Junior Dos Santos on Nov. 12 in the mixed martial arts organization's first broadcast on Fox, UFC president Dana White announced.
* Tony Parker scored 32 points, leading France past Dirk Nowitzki and Germany, 76-65, at the European Championship in Lithuania. Elsewhere, Lakers center Pau Gasol scored 21 points to power unbeaten and defending champion Spain, 86-69, over Britain; Italy beat Latvia, 71-62; Lithuania beat Turkey, 75-68; and Poland beat Portugal, 81-73.
* Former NBA player and Michigan State star Jay Vincent was sentenced to 5 1/2 years in prison and ordered to pay more than $110,000 in restitution to the IRS for his part in a fraud scheme.
* LaShawn Merritt rallied on the final turn as the United States rallied to win the gold medal in the 1,600-meter relay at the world track and field championships in Daegu, South Korea. Long jumper Dwight Phillips won his fourth title, while Carmelita Jeter won silver and Allyson Felix took the bronze in the women's 200.
* Swiss rider Michael Albasini won the 13th stage of the Spanish Vuelta, while Britain's Bradley Wiggins held on to the overall lead for a third consecutive day.
* A civil trial over the multimillion-dollar estate of late boxer Arturo Gatti will proceed in Montreal, despite the impending release of the results of a private investigation into his death. Gatti was found dead in July 2009 at an apartment in Brazil. His wife was a suspect, but an autopsy determined his death was a suicide.