height_ft played_for death_date weight_lb shoots birth_place career_end position height_in birth_date article_title career_start
6 atlanta flames st. louis blues 31 august 1999 190 left weesp , ned 1983 defence 3 19 january 1948 ed kea
 1969
ed kea

adriaan jozef kea -lrb- january 19 , 1948 in weesp , netherlands -- august 31 , 1999 -rrb- was a former dutch-canadian ice hockey defenceman .
born in weesp , netherlands but raised in collingwood , ontario -lrb- his family moved to canada when he was four -rrb- , kea started his national hockey league career with the atlanta flames .
he also played with the st. louis blues .
his career lasted from 1974 to 1983 .
kea is the father of gabe kea from cincinnati , and uncle of joe nieuwendyk .
he was playing for the salt lake golden eagles , the blues ' central hockey league affiliate in salt lake city in 1983 when he suffered severe head trauma when he fell and hit his head on the ice during a game .
the injury left him physically and mentally disabled .
because he was playing in a minor league game , national hockey league benefits for catastrophic injuries did not apply to his case , and he and his family struggled financially for several years because he was unable to hold a job .
on september 1 , 1999 , kea accidentally drowned in the swimming pool of his family 's summer home in ontario , canada .
he was 51 .
