COLUMBUS — The death of a 13-year-old girl struck by a hockey puck at a National Hockey League game has raised questions about how safe fans are and what responsibilities a team or arena bear to protect spectators.

        Brittanie Cecil, who would have turned 14 on Wednesday, died two days after being hit on the forehead by a puck at a Columbus Blue Jackets game Saturday night at Nationwide Arena. She became the first fan ever killed at an NHL game.

        The game was an early birthday present from Brittanie's father, friends said.

        “It's family fun — and the girl didn't see her 14th birthday,” said Jim Elliott, a Michigan attorney who has represented fans injured at games. “It can be fun and it should be fun, but it's big business.”

        Brittanie's family is “trying to make some sense of this tragedy,” said a statement issued Wednesday. “Our loss is overwhelming and the pain that we are enduring is seemingly unbearable.”

        A coroner determined Wednesday that Brittanie died as a result of damage to an artery that runs from the spine into the back of the brain.

        “The puck struck her in the forehead, causing a skull fracture and some bruising of the brain in the area. But that wasn't what led to her death,” said Franklin County Coroner Brad Lewis. “It was the snapping back of the head and the damage to that artery.”

        He said clotting in the artery led to swelling of the brain.

        High break-resistant glass sheets surround all but the bench areas at Nationwide Arena.

        A disclaimer printed on the back of each ticket warns “pucks flying into spectator areas can cause serious injury. Be alert.”

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