Rick DiPietro says he contemplated suicide (or perhaps he was kidding)

Rick DiPietro has had a rough career since signing a 15-year contract with the Islanders in 2005. At one point, he said in a recent interview, those struggles made him contemplate suicide.

by Travis Hughes

Feb 28, 2013, 7:10 PM UTC

Mike Stobe

I’ve made jokes at Rick DiPietro’s expense over the years. God, I’ve made a lot of them. You have almost certainly made them, too.

And it’s easy to forget that behind that goal mask and that massive contract, there’s an actual human who’s had a miserable, miserable career. That’s something that carries over to his day-to-day life, undoubtedly, but it’s really easy for us to brush it off. He makes millions! He’s fine!

Well, no, he’s not fine. DiPietro was placed on waivers by the New York Islanders last week, not long after he was harassed loudly by the Nassau Coliseum crowd during a game. Jokes were made then, jokes were still being made until ... well, today, when News 12 on Long Island sat down with the goalie for an exclusive interview.

It’s yet to air, but reporter Kevin Maher has shared some of the details.

I had a candid interview with @nyislanders G Rick DiPietro today. He was waived then demoted to AHL team in Bridgeport,CT last week.
— Kevin Maher (@KMaherNews12) February 28, 2013

DiPietro told me Isles waiving him felt like, "they ripped my heart out, stabbed it, set it on fire and flushed it down the toilet."
— Kevin Maher (@KMaherNews12) February 28, 2013

I asked DiPietro if he thinks he's still part of the Islanders future plans. He said, "I don't know." @news12li
— Kevin Maher (@KMaherNews12) February 28, 2013

DiPietro also admitted injuries, losing and fan hatred over the past 3 years made him think about killing himself at one point.
— Kevin Maher (@KMaherNews12) February 28, 2013

I feel awful. We should all feel awful. Sorry, Rick.

UPDATE! Maybe we shouldn’t feel bad.

#Isles Just spoke with Rick DiPietro, who assured me he was totally kidding. Although he knows that's not something to joke about anymore
— Katie Strang (@KatieStrangESPN) February 28, 2013

We should at least we should be more aware that hockey players are people and we shouldn’t be *so* hard on them all the time, but ... well, kidding about suicide isn’t cool. Sigh.