Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman Kris Letang walked up looking all fresh and young. He had cut off his long tresses and has moved on to sporting a much younger look.
Letang looked like your every bit of a clean, fit hockey player but what is not visible outside is daunting on the inside.
Recently, Letang just had a stroke. At a young age of 26 that time, a stroke was nowhere near what he had expected to have.
Early morning of Jan 29, Letang's wife saw him sprawled on the floor, awake but could not move. No one knew what happened to him but a few hours after, he felt all well and flew with the team on the same day. But he was not able to join the team against the Los Angeles Kings the day after or the Phoenix Coyotes on Feb. 1.
According to goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury "We didn't know what it was. We were kind of laughing at him. At first, it was no fear. And then when you find out."
"It's humbling, I guess you would say."
After a series of test done on Letang, it was then that they found out that he just had a stroke. According to doctors, the condition of having a stroke at such a young age was rare-to be exact, .01 percent rare. The doctors added that there was no need for surgery and he can go about playing hockey.
According to Letang "It was pretty scary. I was not sure I was going to play again. For that two months that I couldn't do anything, it was perfect to just reflect on life and making sure I'm taking the good decision going forward. I have to respect the fact that I have a family, too, and if I want to put my life at risk if I'm going back to play."
Doctors said that hockey did not cause the stroke and that the risk of getting stroke again is equal when he plays hockey or when he is just walking on the street. But Letang was still adamant.
According to winger Pascal Dupuis "You want him to play hockey and do what he loves best - being out there on the ice, being with the guys. At the same time, you don't want his personal life to suffer, or something bigger."
Right after the stroke, Letang feels that his life is a little different than before. He said "obviously there is some change. But like we talked about at the beginning when it happened, I'm just going to get used to it. That's the process. It's a permanent damage that was done to my brain. I just need to deal with it, make sure I'm comfortable with it."
But he is comfortable now having it.
He added "I would have never stepped on the ice if I didn't feel comfortable. If you ask around, hockey is my life. That's what I love to do. [But] if I was not comfortable coming back, I would have never taken that chance, especially with my family. I feel 100 percent."
