On August 11, Chaminade senior Kevin Bonino was out on the water by Gilgo Beach with two of his friends, one of whom was Smithtown West senior and fellow hockey teammate Connor Dubeau. After riding on jet skis for the day, the group decided to get a quick bite to eat at around 6 p.m. After that, they went back down to the water for a quick dip.

That was when disaster struck.

“It was right after the lifeguards left, and so we just put our stuff down. I ran in first, dove in like normal, and everything was fine,” discussed Bonino. “[Dubeau] sprinted in behind me, dove in, and hit his head.”

“It looked like he was about to stand up for a second, and then just face planted in the water,” Bonino added. “It took me a second to realize that he wasn’t okay.”

According to Bonino, the water is shallow in that area, causing Dubeau to hit his head on the floor. When he wouldn’t get up, Bonino, a newly-certified lifeguard, jumped into action. 

“I just reacted right away,” explained Bonino. “I ran over, grabbed him, and leaned him forward because he had water in his mouth, and he was paralyzed for a minute.”

After he and a few bystanders pulled Dubeau out, they quickly stabilized his neck and called 9-1-1. An ambulance came and took him to Good Samaritan Hospital in West Islip for MRIs, CT scans, and surgery.

“Long story short is, if Kevin wasn’t there, hadn’t pulled him out of the water, and done what he did, Connor wouldn’t be with us today,” said Dubeau’s father, Mark.

At the hospital, it was determined that Dubeau had broken his C4 bone in his neck, resulting in a compression of his spinal cord. According to the Cleveland Clinic website, the C4 bone is part of the cervical spine, which is responsible for protecting the spinal cord, supporting the head, and providing a safe passageway for blood to travel to and from the brain. The C4 bone itself helps with neck rotation and flexion.

The spinal compression paralyzed Dubeau under the water, preventing him from getting up. In fact, it was determined that he remained conscious for the entire 15 seconds he was submerged.

“He couldn’t do anything about it, he wasn’t able to move,” said Dubeau’s father.

The next morning, Dubeau went into surgery. His C3 and C5 bones were fused together, and his broken C4 bone was repaired, relieving the compression on his spinal cord. “He basically had a level two neck fusion,” explained Dubeau’s father. 

In the aftermath of the accident, Dubeau was bedridden for a few days before being able to walk again. Through all the trauma and stress, Bonino remained at his side.

“Kevin was there every day, I would say, for the first week,” described Dubeau’s father. “Kevin was there all the time; he was concerned.”

Concerned was an understatement for Bonino: “The first few days [afterwards] I didn’t sleep that well… It wasn’t easy because [Dubeau] was obviously upset. Now, he’s going to be done with sports, and he can’t really do very much for a long time.”

Bonino and Dubeau’s friendship started around five years ago through hockey. They play on the same Junior Islanders travel team as defensive partners.

“We’re with each other, during the season, almost every day of the week, so he’s gotten to be a really close friend over the past few years,” articulated Bonino.

The Junior Islanders practice three days a week and have games every weekend, giving Bonino, Dubeau, and the rest of the team plenty of time to be around each other.

Outside of the Junior Islanders program, Bonino was part of the Chaminade hockey program during his freshman year. As for Dubeau, he is part of the Smithtown/Hauppauge varsity squad that competes in the Suffolk County High School Hockey League.

The injury has robbed Dubeau of his senior season on the ice, a devastating result for a player. However, he has been present at some of the Junior Islander practices and the first few Smithtown/Hauppauge games.

He has also received support from the hockey community, not only at the amateur level but at the professional level, as well. He received videos and text messages from numerous NHL players and personalities, including former defenseman P.K. Subban, his favorite player; Islander veterans Matt Martin, Josh Bailey, and Anders Lee; rookie and Hauppauge native James Hagen; and Stanley Cup champion Bobby Orr.

The message from Subban was extra meaningful: “When he got that text message, you could just see his eyes light up, he was so excited. It was really uplifting,” reflected Dubeau’s father.

Now, a month after the accident, Dubeau is still recovering. He has returned home but is unable to go back to school. When he does return to the classroom, he will have plenty of support from his family, friends, and classmates.

As for Bonino, he has started his senior year at Chaminade and has continued to play with the Junior Islanders. He still thinks about the events of that day back in August, and he often reflects on what they taught him.

“I still picture everything,” he admitted. “Anything can happen. [The accident] was out of nowhere, so just enjoy life.”