Flames Executive Chris Snow Suffers ‘Catastrophic Brain Injury,’ According to Wife

The journalist-turned-NHL assistant general manager was diagnosed with ALS in 2019.

Flames assistant general manager Chris Snow suffered a catastrophic brain injury and is not expected to live, his wife Kelsie announced on Wednesday afternoon.

Chris Snow, 42, “became unresponsive and went into cardiac arrest” on Tuesday, per Kelsie Snow’s post on X, formerly known as Twitter. The Calgary executive has been battling amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) since 2019; his wife wrote an essay about his life with ALS for SI in February 2020.

Thursday morning, Kelsie Snow issued an update.

“Tests yesterday confirmed that Chris will not wake up,” she wrote on X. “In life, Chris offered his body to a clinical trial to help others. In death he will do the same. He remains on life support while organ donation is arranged. We are so proud of him.”

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— Kelsie Snow (@kelsieswrites) September 27, 2023

Tests yesterday confirmed that Chris will not wake up. In life, Chris offered his body to a clinical trial to help others. In death he will do the same. He remains on life support while organ donation is arranged. We are so proud of him.

— Kelsie Snow (@kelsieswrites) September 28, 2023

Snow embarked on a unique career in hockey operations, entering the profession after getting his start in journalism. A Syracuse University journalism graduate, he covered the Wild and Red Sox for the Minneapolis Star-Tribune and Boston Globe, respectively. He later worked for the Wild’s and the Flames’ front offices.

ALS, a rare neurodegenerative disease widely known in the sports world for its association with Hall of Fame Yankees first baseman Lou Gehrig, affects about 31,000 Americans and 3,000 Canadians every year.