In Memoriam: Dan Snyder
 

10/6/2003 10:50:09 AM
 

The Beckett Hockey family joins the rest of the hockey world in mourning the passing of Atlanta Thrashers forward Dan Snyder.

Snyder died Sunday night as a result of massive brain injuries suffered during an automobile accident on Sept. 29. Teammate Dany Heatley, who was behind the wheel at the time, was seriously injured in the crash but is expected to recover.

Snyder, 25, spent much of the first three years of his pro career in the minor leagues. He helped Orlando win the IHL title in 2001, then played a key role for Chicago’s AHL championship squad in 2002.

Last season, Snyder netted 10 goals and 14 points in 36 games as a rookie with the Thrashers.

Snyder earned his first NHL-licensed collectibles in 2001-02, appearing on eight Rookie Cards and one memorabilia insert.

At this juncture, no manufacturer reported any plans for special tribute cards to Snyder, although that could change in the near future.

"Certainly we are very saddened by Dan's passing and want to offer our sincere condolences to his family," says Upper Deck hockey brand manager Joe Fallon. "Tragic events such as these are never easy to accept. At this time there is no plan to honor Dan in product. I would prefer, and find it more appropriate, to let some time pass. Perhaps we will approach the family in the future with a charitable contribution that would enable us to include a tribute."

"Our initial plans were to include Dan Snyder in the Pacific Complete series, and to include him in products later in the season if he had a breakthrough year," said Pacific's Jeff Morris. "Pacific will not be producing any special commemorative cards as we don't want to come across as taking advantage of such a horrific tragedy. We would still like to include him in Complete and give him a tasteful bio on his card back, but only if we have a 100 percent level of comfort from the hobby, the players association, the NHL, the Thrashers, and the family of Dan Snyder."

"We have issued hockey cards in the past acknowledging the passing of active players," said Baron Bedesky of In the Game, makers of the Parkhurst and Be A Player brands. "In the 1999-2000 Be A Player Memorabilia Series, we produced cards of Dmitri Tertyshny of the Flyers and Steve Chiasson of Carolina. With regard to Snyder, we are simply not in any position to comment about future trading cards given the fact he died less than 24 hours ago. It is a very sad situation for the Snyder family as well as the entire Atlanta franchise."