Ex-NHL star Pavelich's wife dies in fall

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LUTSEN, Minn., Sept. 10 (UPI) -- Kara Pavelich, wife of ex-NHL star Mark Pavelich, died after falling 20 feet off a balcony at the couple's Lutsen, Minn., home, the Cook County sheriff said.

The death was accidental, Sheriff Mark Falk said.

Kara Pavelich, 44, an artist, fell Thursday, likely while she was trying to get better cellphone reception on a balcony that does not have a railing, the sheriff said.

Mark Pavelich was a member of the 1980 U.S. Olympic "Miracle on Ice" team that won the Gold Medal after defeating a vaunted Soviet team.

He went on to play 355 games over seven NHL seasons, recording 329 points, mostly with the New York Rangers.

The Duluth News Tribune reported that after retiring in 1994, Mark Pavelich, a Minnesota native, became a real estate executive.

Mark and Kara Pavelich were married after he retired from hockey.

The couple did not have children. Mark Pavelich has a 25-year-old daughter from a previous marriage.