RIP Wade Belak

[Ducky]

Heard that he passed away

Anyone have details?

[Kris81]

Honestly, Belak was the only thing I ever liked about the Maple Leafs. I remember seeing a documentary thing on him on Rogers Sportsnet a bunch of years ago. This was around the time everyone hated him on the leafs because he didn't do anything, and then you saw what a nice guy he was, how funny he was, and how much he loved his family & all of the charitable things he did, and instantly he became a fan favorite. I'll never forget the scene of him & his daughter dancing around while his wife gave an interview, and she kind of shook her head & said "he does this all the time, it's not just now because there are cameras around." Truly going to be missed.

[Asmegin]

Sun reported it was suicide...but that might be premature.

Awful news. One of my favourite Leafs - seemed like a hilarious guy.

[Kris81]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guY7t3o7bA0

[Tijuana]

Oh boy.. The Dean Blundell Show is gonna have a story on this for sure... if it's true...

http://www.torontosun.com/2011/08/31/ex-leafs-enforcer-belak-found-dead


Former Toronto Maple Leafs tough guy Wade Belak was found dead in a Toronto hotel Wednesday.

The 35-year-old from Saskatoon was found in the tony 1 King West hotel and condo residence.

Belak retired in March after a long NHL career that included stops in Colorado, Calgary, Toronto, Florida and Nashville. He was recently announced as one of the ex-NHLers who would be performing on CBC's Battle of the Blades this year.

Belak is the third NHL enforcer to die in the last four months.

Derek Boogard of the New York Rangers was found dead May 13 in Minneapolis.

The 28-year-old's death was ruled to be due to an accidental overdose of presciption drugs.

Just over two weeks ago, Winnipeg Jets forward Rick Rypien committed suicide in his home in Crowsnest Pass, Alta. It came to light the 27-year-old had battled depression for more than a decade.

[boheca]

When will the NHL finally smarten up and get rid of fighting and head shots... 3 ex enforcers die/commit suicide in the last 3 months... all around 30 yrs old

Marc Savard done and maybe even Sidney is done... for sure he will never be the same player... all these old school hockey guys will say that it's part of the game and anyone who disagrees doesn't know hockey... people will keep on dying and careers keep on getting cut way too short

[musdy]

Damn it!!

[MaximDude]

WOW WTF?!?! Boogyman, Rypien and now Belak!??! I really liked Wade, so funny everytime I saw him on Off the record. :cry:


http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/media/full/jpg/2011/05/13/boogaard.jpg

[wikkid_bigshot]

I will highly doubt that it is a suicide. I am reading his twits and it doesnt seem suicidal from 19 hours ago. RIP Mr Belak.

[thechampion116]

RIP.

very shocking. heard him on the radio/tv a week ago talking about battle of blades and seemed very cheerful and up for the challenge.

just look at this article last week where he's definitely picking a lot of gigs that would have provided him a great career considering the personalities. http://sports.nationalpost.com/2011/08/23/former-tough-guy-belak-takes-a-shot-at-the-battle-of-the-blades/

I would wait a bit before jumping on the suicide or depression or even fighting stuff.

[MrWizard]

Incredibly sad, always seemed like a genuinely happy dude, so I'm inclined to believe these initial accidental OD reports.

[Robb]

My guess is heart attack or brain aneurysm.
Reason is that he tweeted last night.

[thechampion116]

"removed what I wrote" which is quoting a source on how he died.

figure it didn't really matter.

[astrolad]

Very sad :(
My mom taught Wade in grade school.

[pavelbure10]

very sad, sad that all these nhl tough men are dying

[Sauerkraut]

I can't find any other mainstream media reporting it as suicide. Don't think I trust the Sun!

[Robb]

I can't find any other mainstream media reporting it as suicide. Don't think I trust the Sun!

You'll hear the word accidental if it was a drug overdose, or you'll hear some sort of health issue.
I highly doubt he commited suicide. Maybe it was pain killers ? Like what Michael Jackson died of.
Belak has hip pain and back pain, from what I know. Thats why he retired.


This is the 4th NHL player to die this year

- Derek Boogaard (drug overdose)
- Tom Kavanaugh (suicide)
- Rick Rypien (suicide)
- Wade Belak (??)

[Sauerkraut]

My favourite Belak quote:

I wouldn't piss on Avery if he was on fire

[Akraz]

what the hell :(

RIP Wade.. cant believe this.... 3 players in 4 months WTF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:(

[gretzky99]

I know I'll get flamed (especially from Leaf fans) for saying this, but I'll repeat what I said when Derek Boogaard died...


Young muscular (boxers, WWE wrestlers, football players, NHL enforcer...) athletes dying suddenly=steroids or drugs.
My opinion only.
RIP.


Muscular athletes just don't die like that all of a sudden unless something is up.

RIP Belak. I still love the fight when you KO'ed Brashear. :)

[Asmegin]

http://twitter.com/#!/simmonssteve


simmonssteve steve simmons
The Toronto Sun is reporting Wade Belak's death as a suicide. According to our news department, he hung himself.

[Maxman]

canoe.ca was reporting that witnesses reported that he hung himself in his hotel, but that reference seems to have been removed from the article, although it does still state that he took his own life.

[fogo]

CBC/National just reported that Belak's death was due to suicide.:(

[neutral]

The NHL officially has a problem. Hopefully these guys agreed to have their brains donated for study.

[Robb]

Maybe Wade and his wife were splitting up ?

[BornRuff]

RIP.

very shocking. heard him on the radio/tv a week ago talking about battle of blades and seemed very cheerful and up for the challenge.

just look at this article last week where he's definitely picking a lot of gigs that would have provided him a great career considering the personalities. http://sports.nationalpost.com/2011/08/23/former-tough-guy-belak-takes-a-shot-at-the-battle-of-the-blades/

I would wait a bit before jumping on the suicide or depression or even fighting stuff.


Maybe Wade and his wife were splitting up ?

We can only speculate as to what might have caused all this, but I feel as if retirement from hockey and his deteriorating physical abilities could quite possibly be the main catalysis to all this. Obviously, the decision to kill yourself is something that represents and underlying mental illness, it is certainly not a logical way to deal with a problem, but life forces would clearly play a role in pushing people over that edge.

I think it is pretty despicable that his family had to find out about this in media reports. Why would anyone think it is appropriate to publish that he hung himself, no matter how certain they may be of the reports accuracy. Wade and his family deserve more respect.

[DealDemon]

Maybe Wade and his wife were splitting up ?

thats what i was thinking too. there must be a problem with him and his wife.
the guy was still tweeting just a day ago and he's got the BOTB on his schedule. plus, the guy is a go luck happy guy.
it must be something that happen between him and his wife.

we just have to wait and see what really drives him to take his own life.

RIP WADE!!!

[jcon]

I will highly doubt that it is a suicide. I am reading his twits and it doesnt seem suicidal from 19 hours ago. RIP Mr Belak.


My guess is heart attack or brain aneurysm.
Reason is that he tweeted last night.

It's obvious that they still have a long way to go in educating people on the nature of mental illness.



RIP Wade.

[vchan81]

I was shocked to hear this on the news. I think it's time for the NHL to seriously look at head shots and see the effects it has on players and their futures.

[stealth]

Very shocking and seems so out of character and untimely. Not exactly an Any Winehouse/Kurt Cobain scenario.

I dont know how anyone with young kids could commit suicide unless they have a mental disturbance. No right minded parent would ever put their children through that.

[thechampion116]

I was shocked to hear this on the news. I think it's time for the NHL to seriously look at head shots and see the effects it has on players and their futures.

its impossible and can only be done until after a player finishes a career (enforcers probably go for 10 years) and then tracking them through time.

You simply cannot correlate the current deaths to the guys being enforcers. Boogard overdosed on alcohol and oxycodene. Even a guy like Rypien was suffering from depression for over 10 years (well before he ever started being an enforcer in the NHL or AHL).

We don't know the full situation yet either (for Belak). Right now, the best thing the NHL could do is to set-up a confidential system where by players are able to discuss their issues with a doctor. Maybe as part of training camp, all players need to undergo a medical test that deems them mentally fit/stable (which they probably do already).

[V400]

From his interviews on Edge 102.1, he seemed like pretty great guy. R.I.P.

[jcon]

its impossible and can only be done until after a player finishes a career (enforcers probably go for 10 years) and then tracking them through time.

It's not impossible to do. They have tons of stats already on the matter. It's time they get rid of goons and fighting from hockey. It's a detriment to the sport. They can take the goon Cherry with them.

[skyblue12]

RIP wade belak, i will always remember that interview he did about why he deserved to play with mats sundin on the top line.. one of the funniest ones i've seen.

[boheca]

its impossible and can only be done until after a player finishes a career (enforcers probably go for 10 years) and then tracking them through time.

You simply cannot correlate the current deaths to the guys being enforcers. Boogard overdosed on alcohol and oxycodene. Even a guy like Rypien was suffering from depression for over 10 years (well before he ever started being an enforcer in the NHL or AHL).

We don't know the full situation yet either (for Belak). Right now, the best thing the NHL could do is to set-up a confidential system where by players are able to discuss their issues with a doctor. Maybe as part of training camp, all players need to undergo a medical test that deems them mentally fit/stable (which they probably do already).

How can you say there is no correlation... thinking like this, and I'm sure guys like Cherry will say the same, will keep fighting and head shots in hockey and keep these problems around longer than they should be... how many guys are going to have to retire in their prime before the NHL says no more head shots... period... Marc Savard is probably done... Crosby may never play again or will at least never be the same player... how many more guys who just happen to be ex-fighters are going to die in their 30's... Belak even said, “On nights you knew you had to fight, there were nerves, you never slept the night before,” “But you dealt with it or you didn’t. You don’t really get over it, you just go out and do your job.” He had to hide the way he felt his whole career and that's why he seemed "happy go lucky" but who knows how he really felt... obviously something was wrong but he learned to hide it...

[thechampion116]

How can you say there is no correlation... thinking like this, and I'm sure guys like Cherry will say the same, will keep fighting and head shots in hockey and keep these problems around longer than they should be... how many guys are going to have to retire in their prime before the NHL says no more head shots... period... Marc Savard is probably done... Crosby may never play again or will at least never be the same player... how many more guys who just happen to be ex-fighters are going to die in their 30's... Belak even said, “On nights you knew you had to fight, there were nerves, you never slept the night before,” “But you dealt with it or you didn’t. You don’t really get over it, you just go out and do your job.” He had to hide the way he felt his whole career and that's why he seemed "happy go lucky" but who knows how he really felt... obviously something was wrong but he learned to hide it...

head shots and fighting to me are two different things.

In my opinion, head shots are far more dangerous than two guys standing and throwing maybe 3 to 5 punches that actually land in a 30 sec-45 sec fight.
Its head shots that need to be removed and this one is very difficult to do because what about unintentional head contact (which can occur) because guys are skating at blazing speeds and making last minute decisions. The size difference is also a factor. For example, Chara hitting everyone could be considered a head shot, simply due to his height. Its intended head shots that need to be removed from the game.

Fighting is not an issue. Once again, your examples of Savard and Crosby, they ARE NOT fighters. Even then, the enforcers that did die, had underlying issues that didn't stem from fighting. Boogard died from addiction (which occurs all the time throughout the world) and Rypien died of depression (over 10 years of depression well before he was an NHLer) and people commit suicide over depression as well. Look, if you all understood science and actually even went to data management in high school would understand that 3 events occurring does not equal cause or even correlation.

People bringing up Don Cherry is despicable. This guys does not support guys who only play to fight. He has always been 1000% behind player safety and people need to wake up. This guy has brought a ton of solutions that the NHL has refused to use. This includes the use of softer pads (which one of the junior leagues just implemented), change in boards throughout the league, no touch icing, removal of the instigator rule. Even Don Cherry has gone after the guys who injured Savard and Crosby.

[jcon]

Fighting is not an issue. Once again, your examples of Savard and Crosby, they ARE NOT fighters. Even then, the enforcers that did die, had underlying issues that didn't stem from fighting. Boogard died from addiction (which occurs all the time throughout the world) and Rypien died of depression (over 10 years of depression well before he was an NHLer) and people commit suicide over depression as well. Look, if you all understood science and actually even went to data management in high school would understand that 3 events occurring does not equal cause or even correlation.

Fighting is not an issue? You do not understand the nature of addiction and you do not understand the psyche of the goon.

3 events do not equal causation but there are farrrrrr more than 3 events. These are just the most recent, in the past few months.

[jcon]

People bringing up Don Cherry is despicable.

Don Cherry is despicable. He is a goon and who promotes fighting. hockey is better served without fighting and without Cherry.

[vchan81]

We need to ban blindslide hits to the head. Guys like Savard and Crosby (maybe?) are retiring way too early. I agree that you can't ban everything but definitely the cheap shots to the head can be enforced and should.

[Maxman]

Fighting is not an issue? You do not understand the nature of addiction and you do not understand the psyche of the goon.

3 events do not equal causation but there are farrrrrr more than 3 events. These are just the most recent, in the past few months.

+1

The combination of living the life of a tough guy (having to beat up people just for the sake of it) and chronic pain (hip, back, and likely head injuries) is a difficult thing to deal with. Compound that with the end of a career, loss of the companionship that occurs on a team, and any small event can trigger a meltdown. An injured brain can have very difficult time making rational decisions and sometimes the pain of living can be too much.

Most people will never know what its like to deal with these issues every day, and for that, you should be thankful.

[thechampion116]

Fighting is not an issue? You do not understand the nature of addiction and you do not understand the psyche of the goon.

3 events do not equal causation but there are farrrrrr more than 3 events. These are just the most recent, in the past few months.

where are these events???????

your saying FAR more events. literally thousands of people have played in the NHL and if you can scrounge up a significant number that have committed suicide, then please do so.

I don't fully understand addiction or depression, but not many of us do. There job was to play hockey and it involved fighting. What about policemen who have to worry about possibly going to their next call and potentially having to use their gun or have a gun pointed towards them? What about firefighters who put their lives at risk to save others? What about the office worker who has to deal with 10 different deadlines in a week?

My point is that everyone goes through different levels of stress and have different ways of dealing with it. The fact that these guys played in the NHL has made it over-blown to a point.

Enough with bringing up Don Cherry into this conversation, if you watch Coach's Corner, Don Cherry does support fighting but only as a means to which it is can be used to police the players (amongst themselves) and make sure the teams respect eachother. That is why he's a supporter of the instigator rule being removed. Side show fighting where two guys go on the ice to fight and sit back down on the bench needs to be removed. A fight has to mean something happened that made the event necessary.

We will never really know why Belak killed himself but the problem is so much more than just fighting. These people are humans and go through the same emotions any of us would. That is why I thought a former play brought up a good point.

http://www.thestar.com/sports/hockey/article/1047950--nhl-players-ask-tough-questions-after-wade-belak-s-death?bn=1

[Supercooled]

When will the NHL finally smarten up and get rid of fighting and head shots... 3 ex enforcers die/commit suicide in the last 3 months... all around 30 yrs old

Marc Savard done and maybe even Sidney is done... for sure he will never be the same player... all these old school hockey guys will say that it's part of the game and anyone who disagrees doesn't know hockey... people will keep on dying and careers keep on getting cut way too short

May be the 20 years of following hockey doesn't qualify me as a die hard fan but I can't make the connection of headshots in the game to suicidal tendencies but may be that's just me.

It's always easy to be armchair psychiatrists but let's just remember there's a myriad of reasons why someone would take their life if indeed that is the case with Belak and Boogard.

It's sad to imagine the prospect of a great player like Crosby who's career may be cut short like Kariya and their colleagues who also had their careers due to concussions but connecting that to these deaths is pretty tenuous.

[Supercooled]

It seems with training camp a mere 2 weeks away, Pittsburgh front office will seek medical clearance for Sid to join despite still having symptoms. Remember folks, it was a mere 7 months ago when he was hit by Steckel and Hedman. Kariya pretty much took a good portion of 2 seasons to try and recovery and only decided to hang it up this summer because it was clear that it's a life sentence for him. Savard announced he'll take 11/12 off entirely but the Bruins' insurance will pay his salary but that's still hurting the Bruins in one way or another. Who's willing to bet the suits in Pittsburgh including Mr. Lemieux and co. are more concerned about their teams' viability than the kid's health? This move to try and get him to train is basically an ultimatum. It's nice to come on camera and say you're worried about his health and all that jazz, but one wrong move in training camp and he could be set back a year or more. If I were Crosby, I'd tell the owners to shove it and take it easy until it's absolutely symptom free. Kariya supposedly has brain damage according to one report I read.

[boheca]

May be the 20 years of following hockey doesn't qualify me as a die hard fan but I can't make the connection of headshots in the game to suicidal tendencies but may be that's just me.

It's always easy to be armchair psychiatrists but let's just remember there's a myriad of reasons why someone would take their life if indeed that is the case with Belak and Boogard.

It's sad to imagine the prospect of a great player like Crosby who's career may be cut short like Kariya and their colleagues who also had their careers due to concussions but connecting that to these deaths is pretty tenuous.

I'm not saying that head shots are connected to these deaths at all... I'm saying that the NHL has issues, fighting and head shots are two of them...

All these "accidental" head shots are causing great young players to have their career cut short...

All these ex fighters that are dying way to young have to have some correlation...

the sooner the NHL realizes this and does something about it the better the league will be...

[rfdnoob]

If it was suicide, I'm thinking it's serious issue NHL is in... Copycats

[Robb]

How would the police know if it was suicide ? Unless he hung himself, or shot himself..

Im guessing Belak took too many pain killers and died accidentily.

I wonder when the cause of death will be publicized so we can all learn from this horrible tragedy !

[mjl_toronto]

If it was suicide, I'm thinking it's serious issue NHL is in... Copycats

THIS!!!

I'm actually quite surprised how much coverage the media is willing to give on this. Have they not heard of the Werther Effect (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copycat_suicide)? They know not to report other suicides, but apparently think its okay for high profile cases like this. Do they not see the pattern?

When a player like Belak hears all the news about former enforcers dying and suffering from head trauma, how could he not think the same about himself? It would undoubtedly get him so depressed and make him think dark thoughts. Apparently it can take as little as 5 seconds to decide to kill oneself. This applies even for happy-go-lucky guys like Belak.

[FrogPrince]

I heard on WGR550 that he hung himself

[Cas77]

I heard on WGR550 that he hung himself

Yeah so instead of banning fighting we should ban ropes. If we ban fighting death could happen again, but if we ban ropes then nobody will ever hang themselves again, unless they get a contraband piece of rope. But then we could have a rope registry and track these people's actions...no?

Nobody ever forced these guys to get punched in the head. If they weren't being paid millions to play a game they would be doing something else. Ask anyone in here to trade a million bucks a year for a 1 in 300 chance of dying by age 35 and I'm sure the large majority would do it. Ask any fighter if they want to ban fighting and go work as a bricklayer and NONE of them will want to ban fighting.

So why is everyone up in arms wanting to help people who don't want to be helped. Are there not people more deserving and appreciative of being helped in this world?

[FrogPrince]

Yeah so instead of banning fighting we should ban ropes. If we ban fighting death could happen again, but if we ban ropes then nobody will ever hang themselves again, unless they get a contraband piece of rope. But then we could have a rope registry and track these people's actions...no?

Nobody ever forced these guys to get punched in the head. If they weren't being paid millions to play a game they would be doing something else. Ask anyone in here to trade a million bucks a year for a 1 in 300 chance of dying by age 35 and I'm sure the large majority would do it. Ask any fighter if they want to ban fighting and go work as a bricklayer and NONE of them will want to ban fighting.

So why is everyone up in arms wanting to help people who don't want to be helped. Are there not people more deserving and appreciative of being helped in this world?

No kidding.

Retired at 35, a nice nest egg no doubt, wife and two daughter and mini-celeb status and the guy offs himself. Sorry, I'm not shedding one tear for this coward.

[Muney]

From CBC Reporter Mark Seidel's twitter

MarkSeidel
Wade Belak did not kill himself and any suggestion to the contrary is simply wrong. As time passes, the truth will emerge. RIP my friend.
10 hours ago Favorite Retweet Reply

MarkSeidel Mark Seidel
Can't say much about Wades death but when it is all said and done, I believe that this will be ruled a horrible accident. Sorry 4 vagueness
8 hours ago Favorite Retweet Reply


Erotic Asphyxiation? Would make a little more sense.

[Shaner]

From CBC Reporter Mark Seidel's twitter

MarkSeidel
Wade Belak did not kill himself and any suggestion to the contrary is simply wrong. As time passes, the truth will emerge. RIP my friend.
10 hours ago Favorite Retweet Reply

MarkSeidel Mark Seidel
Can't say much about Wades death but when it is all said and done, I believe that this will be ruled a horrible accident. Sorry 4 vagueness
8 hours ago Favorite Retweet Reply


Erotic Asphyxiation? Would make a little more sense.

Anything is possible, but I very highly doubt it. The cops aren't morons. There would be indications it was erotic asphyxiation as opposed to suicide. Anyone that says "but he seemed so happy" truly doesn't understand mental health. "Happy" people kill themselves all the time. It's one of the problems with suicide, the signs, if there even are any, are different from person to person. There is no one thing that determines whether a person is suicidal or not.

The breaking point for Belak may very well have been Rick Rypien. As strange as it sounds, suicide is contagious. When one person does it, it suddenly becomes a very realistic option for everyone else who is struggling. Belak may have thought that if it was the answer for Rick Rypien, then it was the answer for himself as well. Nobody is too happy to kill themselves.

[Robb]

Why would cops say it was suicide before Belaks family gives consent ?

[Shaner]

Why would cops say it was suicide before Belaks family gives consent ?

Maybe they didn't. Could have been a reporter who saw the scene, or perhaps a reporter with a friend or family member who is a cop and that family member told the reporter unofficially. Or perhaps they already told the Belak family, so that is why they released that information. Or maybe they released it without their consent because they don't need the families consent.

Could be any of the above.

[Supercooled]

Yeah so instead of banning fighting we should ban ropes. If we ban fighting death could happen again, but if we ban ropes then nobody will ever hang themselves again, unless they get a contraband piece of rope. But then we could have a rope registry and track these people's actions...no?

Nobody ever forced these guys to get punched in the head. If they weren't being paid millions to play a game they would be doing something else. Ask anyone in here to trade a million bucks a year for a 1 in 300 chance of dying by age 35 and I'm sure the large majority would do it. Ask any fighter if they want to ban fighting and go work as a bricklayer and NONE of them will want to ban fighting.

So why is everyone up in arms wanting to help people who don't want to be helped. Are there not people more deserving and appreciative of being helped in this world?

Good points.

The NHL and professional sport at large has come under scrutiny as of late with regards to running on the wrong side of the law and even in the NHL it's not unheard of for a player to be marred by their past but suicides/depression and drug use is some what a new frontier for them. At the end of the day they should just deal with it internally and not masquerade this for all to see; it's not a freak show! They're purveyors of entertainment not personnel in life and death situations where we expect them to be of sound mind and body like doctors or politicians that have wide reaching consequences for their actions.

[DrakeFortune]

Belak's mom says Wade was suffering from depression. 680 news said he hung himself.

http://ca.sports.yahoo.com/nhl/news;_ylt=AjvDSjAh7ZwcM3VwkBr8pAdShgM6?slug=capres s-hkn_belak_dead-7955359

CTV news usually does not state cause of death for suicides.

[Psubs]

It was an accidental death. :|

[Shaner]

It was an accidental death. :|

I don't know why people keep saying this. His family has said he was battling depression and the police confirmed he hung himself. There's nothing accidental about that.

[Asmegin]

Mark Seidel and PJ Stock from CBC both said it was accidental.

Mark Seidel


Can't say much about Wades death but when it is all said and done, I believe that this will be ruled a horrible accident. Sorry 4 vagueness



Wade Belak did not kill himself and any suggestion to the contrary is simply wrong. As time passes, the truth will emerge. RIP my friend.

PJ Stock


I believe they've taken the word 'suicide' away from this and called it an 'accidental death'. That's kind of the latest.


"Let's just call it an accidental death right now. But he did die of strangulation," and that "it's not fair" to place the deaths of Derek Boogaard (notes) , Rick Rypien and Wade Belak in the same context.

Unfortunately if it is true, the only thing that would fit is auto-erotic asphyxiation.

[Shaner]

Mark Seidel and PJ Stock from CBC both said it was accidental.

Mark Seidel





PJ Stock





Unfortunately if it is true, the only thing that would fit is auto-erotic asphyxiation.

This isn't surprising. Family and friends never want to believe that a loved one killed themselves. They would rather any other explanation. I guess it's possible that it was accidental, but I doubt it. He was battling depression and the police ruled it a suicide. They don't jump to conclusions when it comes to determining cause of death.

[Longobongo]

Unfortunately if it is true, the only thing that would fit is auto-erotic asphyxiation.

shame if true, not another david carradine like death

[Psubs]

Unfortunately if it is true, the only thing that would fit is auto-erotic asphyxiation. :|

Suicide is fine for no insurance payout but a trade off to keep his activities unknown to his daughters. Revealing more wouldn't make anything better for anyone. Kind of like the TTC stating that there was an injury at track level with a 2-hour delay.

[gretzky99]

It was an accidental death. :|

So what was the final verdict on his cause of death...suicide or accidental death? Was there an official word given? :?:

[Psubs]

So what was the final verdict on his cause of death...suicide or accidental death? Was there an official word given? :?:

Not yet. 4 days ago, someone proposed that stopping steroid use caused his depression.

http://www.irisemedia.com/blog/2011/09/08/wade-belaks-possible-cause-of-death-steroids.html

This would be a nice cover-up to condemn the use of steroids in the first place and keep possible infidelities and preferences under wraps. Though no insurance pay-out may hurt a little but hopefully they saved enough.