Later that night, sitting up in bed, Davis clutched the fist that nearly hit her son Nasir. She imagined how much it would have hurt the fan if he hadn’t helped, and later posted on Tik Tok with the intention of following up with him.
“I owe that guy lunch or dinner, another thank you,” Davis said. He said in the video“… because I can’t imagine my son getting hit with that hockey puck.
The video, which has garnered more than 4 million views, quickly reached Andrew Podolak, who said he was happy Davis defended her daughter in a TikTok message.
Davis, Podolak and Nasir reunited Saturday in another American Hockey League game before the Cleveland Monsters played the Laval Rockets. Davis, 33, told The Washington Post she was happy to hug Podolak and thank him for what he did. She said it could be a life-saving measure.
Davis, Nasser and her friend met when they met Podolak He sat on the sideline, a few rows from the ice, Thursday night at Rockets’ Mortgage Fieldhouse. A win secures the Columbus Blue Jackets a spot in the playoffs.
Just over a minute before the Monsters won, Davis’ friend She took out her phone to record the players fighting and partying on the ice. That’s when a Cleveland player batted the pass into the air and overturned the pass.
Davis said she didn’t have time to respond. Sitting across from Nasr, Podolak jumped up, reached out, deflected the puck and sent it over Nasr’s head. Nasr didn’t even see the puck, Davis said, but ice chips landed in his hair.
“The guys behind us picked up the punch and gave it to my son,” Davis said. “And, you know, I put my fist up and realized what he missed.
Davis thanked Podolak and asked him to pose for a photo. He joked that he should be a goalkeeper with Nasser. But when the game ended, she was still dealing with how close the punch was to her son’s face. As she left the stage, her head hurt and her stomach hurt.
The next day, she called the fan to the stage in an attempt to identify him. As the staff asked for more time to find him, she posted a Tik Tok video showing a picture of Nasser and Podolak on Saturday morning. She suspected that she could find him through the social networking app.
When she woke up eight hours later, Davis said the video had gone viral. Podolak said he texted her, and Davis responded by saying she would buy playoff tickets later this month.
On Saturday afternoon, the Monsters invited Davis, Nasser and Podolak to their game that night. Cameras from local television stations followed the three players as Davis and Podolak embraced as they arrived at the podium. Before entering the ice, they greeted the players and narrated Podolak’s block with reporters.
“There were two other kids sitting behind me, so I tried to jump in front of him,” Podolak said. Fox 8 News.
Watching the game from the stadium’s front-row seats, Davis feared another puppy might fly toward Nasser. So the 4-year-old boy sits among the adults – if the heroes of Podolak are wanted again.
While Davis said she still has “PTSD” from the incident, Podolak’s efforts helped make Thursday a night to remember for Nasser for a different reason. The fans were so happy that they gave him a flying puck, which he has been holding since then while he was sleeping.