A man is lucky to be alive and has many people to thank after he was stabbed at a College Street bar early Saturday morning.

Police allege that a fight escalated and the young man was attacked.

"Currently we're investigating an altercation that took place here at the Cloak and Dagger," confirms Sgt Dan Pravica of Toronto Police.

It "resulted in one male suffering some stab wounds in the lower back portion of his body," he continued.

The assault happened around 1:20am, but fast-acting witnesses ensured it didn't last much longer. Pravica explains that they helped "subdue" the attacker, and held him down until police arrived.

"We've had quite a few witnesses, the people here have been very forthcoming, they've helped out," he outlined.

The victim is in hospital recovering from non life-threatening injuries, and one man is under arrest.