It's rare that you see the NHL and snakes in the same headline, even after the introduction of the Seattle Kraken as an expansion team, but the murder of a snake breeder has forced NFL goaltender Robin Lehner to file for bankruptcy.
Who is Robin Lehner?
Robin Lehner is a well-known name throughout the ice hockey world, having enjoyed a 12-year career in the NHL which included a brilliant spell with the Buffalo Sabres.
It hasn't, though, been an easy ride for the Swedish star who has been forced to battle bipolar disorder and an alcohol addiction.
His use of alcohol to help numb the impact of a long-standing concussion is a cautionary tale to other hockey players, but a spell in a drug rehabilitation center appeared to have corrected the issue.
He then spent a season with the New York Islanders, performing expertly en route to winning the William M. Jennings trophy for conceding the fewest goals.
However, 2023 has thrown up a new curveball for the Swede to deal with, in the form of financial ruin.
How did a snake breeder lead to Robin Lehner's downfall?
Lehner's bankruptcy declaration has seen he and his wife Donya declare liabilities of up to 50 million dollars, according to a report published by The Daily Mail.
It is understood that the 31-year-old's financial problems started with his 1.2-million-dollar purchase of an exotic snake.
This wasn't the only snake Lehner purchased, with Ben Renick having been named as his serpent dealer.
But, Renick was then murdered by his wife and her ex-boyfriend in a matter unrelated to the hockey goalie, which prompted Lehner to cease his payment plan for all the snakes.
Renick's estate then brought a lawsuit against the goaltender, suggesting he owed multiple payments for the reptiles, whilst Lehner countersued for lost value.
He claimed he took on millions of dollars in costs for taking care of Renick's snakes, and displaying them at his exotic reptile farm in Missouri.
The snakes began to breed in an "unsupervised and uncontrolled" manner, which, according to Lehner's lawyers, caused them to lose monetary value.
Despite declaring bankruptcy, the case regarding the value of the Lehner-owned reptiles continues.
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