News Article: Oh My God - Another stroke for Letang

[Pens1566]

I’m sorry you’ll never play Chopin again.

I think you mean Frederic f***ing Chopin

 

[HandshakeLine]

And you, music lover!

 

[LOGiK]

Well not to kick a man when he is down but Letang ain't the brightest light in the room

Yeah. He can say whatever he wants, at this point the organization isn't going to ice a player who may drop ded on the ice.
What is it with this guy is he working out the the point his heart is going to pop or what? Combination of genetic heart issues or.... what....
But I'm in the retire and hang it up crowd. That is just pure madness to have TWO strokes and say 'back soon bro'... like a stroke is no big deal....

 

[Sidgeni Malkby]

Im beginning to believe that Letang is simultaneously injury prone and indestructible… I totally expect him back at some super accelerated timeframe that nobody expects simply because it’s what he does… I do wish the guy a speedy recovery.. not because I want to see him on the ice, but because he is one of the general good guys on the team and certainly doesn’t deserve any of this…

I'm sure if the doctors told him that his stroke was related to hockey trauma, he would hang up his skates at this point. It's very likely it's unrelated hence his talk about coming back already.

Not be selfish, but we are much better with him than without him. I also like to watch him play, even with the gaffes and all .

Ultimately it's a decision that he and his family will make and whatever the choice, much respect!

 

[Sidgeni Malkby]

Jeff Carter actually died like 109 years ago, we’re just a magnet for poltergeists.

Apropos of nothing, I always find it interesting that athletes are expected to come back and triumph over these kinds of dangerous physical adversities, but if it was, say an accountant, people would be like “man, just take the disability and retire!”

Usually most of us have careers to survive, and not necessarily our passion. Being an ultimate yo-yo champion doesn't pay the bills .

 

[HandshakeLine]

Usually most of us have careers to survive, and not necessarily our passion. Being an ultimate yo-yo champion doesn't pay the bills .

Which makes it even weirder when people want an athlete to risk aggravating an already serious injury for our amusement. Like I said, I get that part of fandom, we all kind of want to live vicariously through our sports heroes, but it's weird when you stop and think about it in these contexts. It's also what made the Dupuis thing so incredibly pathetic.

 

[Sidgeni Malkby]

Which makes it even weirder when people want an athlete to risk aggravating an already serious injury for our amusement. Like I said, I get that part of fandom, we all kind of want to live vicariously through our sports heroes, but it's weird when you stop and think about it in these contexts. It's also what made the Dupuis thing so incredibly pathetic.

I was referring more to the athletes POV.

From a fan perspective, yeah, we would honestly prefer seeing a performance vs not. I mean looks out for musicians that take copious amounts of drugs so they can perform on a bi-nightly basis. We just act surprised when we hear about them dead ODed years later.

What is actually great is leagues are no longer pushing players to come back quickly (liability?) after concerning injuries (ie. concussions) vs in the past (ie. shake it off). However, the concern isn't there for all professions. Few are batting eyelashes for the UPS drivers almost dying due to no AC on their trucks. We just want our 2 days shipping :\.

 

[SEALBound]

Which makes it even weirder when people want an athlete to risk aggravating an already serious injury for our amusement. Like I said, I get that part of fandom, we all kind of want to live vicariously through our sports heroes, but it's weird when you stop and think about it in these contexts. It's also what made the Dupuis thing so incredibly pathetic.

I think we need to be a bit more pragmatic when looking at this. The situations with Letang and Dupuis are certainly different. If they weren't and Letang was actually at a much higher risk, similar to Dupuis, he would have retired in 2014, or perhaps felt the effects of the treatment path and later retired.

But certainly after a long battery of tests and consultations with physicians, his family, the organization, the decision was made for him to return because he was able to. He was clear by the doctors to return likely with the understanding that the risk is not zero. But that said, hockey is not a zero-risk game. I imagine at some point there was a "well here's the likelihood of it happening again. He's the likelihood of other issues/injuries" and it was a level of risk that the doctors, team, Letang, and his family all found acceptable.

This situation may not be any different. We don't know that yet but presumably, the issue stems from similar circumstances. Luckily, I believe Letang at this point, is hyperaware of signs and symptoms so he can be treated immediately if he thinks it's occurring again. If you get early treatment, there's a good treatment success rate with strokes. So like in 2014, after a couple of tests and discussions with the doctor, they may have a similar "well here are the risks" discussion and they can rehash that argument.

Really though, I'm not sure if there's any significant increase in future risk if he decides to play again. And if there isn't, I don't see any reason why he couldn't return if that's what he wants (and all signs point to him wanting to return). Luckily, for us, it's not our decision. It's his. We don't get the privilege of dictating what level of risk a person can or cannot take when it comes to their own health. At least from behind the keyboard.

If the doctor clears him, there's no major increase in risk, and he wants to return with the support of his family, why wouldn't someone support that decision?

 

[HandshakeLine]

I was referring more to the athletes POV.

From a fan perspective, yeah, we would honestly prefer seeing a performance vs not. I mean looks out for musicians that take copious amounts of drugs so they can perform on a bi-nightly basis. We just act surprised when we hear about them dead ODed years later.

What is actually great is leagues are no longer pushing players to come back quickly (liability?) after concerning injuries (ie. concussions) vs in the past (ie. shake it off). However, the concern isn't there for all professions. Few are batting eyelashes for the UPS drivers almost dying due to no AC on their trucks. We just want our 2 days shipping :\.

Yeah, the Dupuis saga was really sad like that. You could tell that he wrapped up his entire life in playing the game and was terrified of not being a "Hockey Player" anymore, even if it meant serious injury or leaving his family grieving. The whole saga of lying to the doctors was insane. On the one hand, I sympathize with that, it's a hard thing to give up, emotionally. On the other hand, man, if that was my dad, I'd be screaming at him to just retire, plus furious he was lying to me and his doctors.

I worry about that with Letang too, but I think he seems to have a better support system, plus being an elite guy instead of a grinder who became The Man for Sid... I feel like I trust Letang and his people to make a better decision than Dupuis, for what it's worth.

And hell yeah, people should always value the health and well-being of workers, it sucks that they don't and that's one of the foundational lessons of Pittsburgh history.

I think we need to be a bit more pragmatic when looking at this. The situations with Letang and Dupuis are certainly different. If they weren't and Letang was actually at a much higher risk, similar to Dupuis, he would have retired in 2014, or perhaps felt the effects of the treatment path and later retired.

But certainly after a long battery of tests and consultations with physicians, his family, the organization, the decision was made for him to return because he was able to. He was clear by the doctors to return likely with the understanding that the risk is not zero. But that said, hockey is not a zero-risk game. I imagine at some point there was a "well here's the likelihood of it happening again. He's the likelihood of other issues/injuries" and it was a level of risk that the doctors, team, Letang, and his family all found acceptable.

This situation may not be any different. We don't know that yet but presumably, the issue stems from similar circumstances. Luckily, I believe Letang at this point, is hyperaware of signs and symptoms so he can be treated immediately if he thinks it's occurring again. If you get early treatment, there's a good treatment success rate with strokes. So like in 2014, after a couple of tests and discussions with the doctor, they may have a similar "well here are the risks" discussion and they can rehash that argument.

Really though, I'm not sure if there's any significant increase in future risk if he decides to play again. And if there isn't, I don't see any reason why he couldn't return if that's what he wants (and all signs point to him wanting to return). Luckily, for us, it's not our decision. It's his. We don't get the privilege of dictating what level of risk a person can or cannot take when it comes to their own health. At least from behind the keyboard.

If the doctor clears him, there's no major increase in risk, and he wants to return with the support of his family, why wouldn't someone support that decision?

Yeah, of course, they're not at all the same, thank god. I totally agree with this. Like I say up thread, I trust Letang way more to make a reasonable and informed decision about his health. The Dupuis thing was just frankly sad and depressing, even after the team tried spinning it as "oh, but he's such a ~~wArRiOr!~~" which was insulting.

 

[BigEezyE22]

We just hope Jeff Carter has a rash.

Yeah but his would likely be treatable with penicillin.

 

[Buddy Bizarre]

Yeah but his would likely be treatable with penicillin.

We've all had that kind of rash

 

[SEALBound]

Yeah, the Dupuis saga was really sad like that. You could tell that he wrapped up his entire life in playing the game and was terrified of not being a "Hockey Player" anymore, even if it meant serious injury or leaving his family grieving. The whole saga of lying to the doctors was insane. On the one hand, I sympathize with that, it's a hard thing to give up, emotionally. On the other hand, man, if that was my dad, I'd be screaming at him to just retire.

I worry about that with Letang too, but I think he seems to have a better support system, plus being an elite guy instead of a grinder who became The Man for Sid... I feel like I trust Letang and his people to make a better decision than Dupuis, for what it's worth.

And hell yeah, people should always value the health and well-being of workers, it sucks that they don't and that's one of the foundational lessons of Pittsburgh history.


Yeah, of course, they're not at all the same, thank god. I totally agree with this. Like I say up thread, I trust Letang way more to make a reasonable and informed decision about his health. The Dupuis thing was just frankly sad and depressing, even after the team tried spinning it as "oh, but he's such a ~~wArRiOr!~~" which was insulting.

For sure. I was actually quite upset with Dupuis at the time for doing what he did. I was mad at him for what he was potentially doing to himself and his family (first and foremost) and then I was also selfishly upset with him for taking a roster spot from a better player.

I think back about Duper and it still makes me that that he hid his symptoms.

 

[Shanwhatplan]

Hi, I’m a diehard Leafs fan, but I come in peace. I’m curious about Letang and his recent stroke, even more so because of the migraine he was also experiencing at the time (I may be wrong on the migraine). About 7 years ago our oldest son, who was teaching in Northern Quebec at the time, suffered a brain bleed, and had to be airlifted to the hospital at McGill University. It was then that we found out he had “cavernous malformations”, which are basically tiny blood vessels in your brain that are tangled up. They are about the size of a raspberry. This was the result of an inherited gene, passed down on my mother’s side of the family. It was very serious, and we were extremely lucky and grateful that he didn’t die from the bleed. It couldn’t be operated on because it had occurred in the brain stem.
Then, about a year later, our youngest son, who was doing his post grad in Saskatoon, had a bad migraine, and that evening he suffered a stroke. Luckily he was okay, but later had to have brain surgery once he had healed enough (we found out that he also had these cavernous malformations, and the stroke was due to one of the malformations bursting). I also have them. Every few years we have to have MRI’s done to see if any more have developed, shrunk, or grown.
Im curious as to whether Letang has ever had an MRI done to see if he might have these.

 

[Gurglesons]

Letang is already back on the ice.

 

[Goalie_Bob]

Hi, I’m a diehard Leafs fan, but I come in peace. I’m curious about Letang and his recent stroke, even more so because of the migraine he was also experiencing at the time (I may be wrong on the migraine). About 7 years ago our oldest son, who was teaching in Northern Quebec at the time, suffered a brain bleed, and had to be airlifted to the hospital at McGill University. It was then that we found out he had “cavernous malformations”, which are basically tiny blood vessels in your brain that are tangled up. They are about the size of a raspberry. This was the result of an inherited gene, passed down on my mother’s side of the family. It was very serious, and we were extremely lucky and grateful that he didn’t die from the bleed. It couldn’t be operated on because it had occurred in the brain stem.
Then, about a year later, our youngest son, who was doing his post grad in Saskatoon, had a bad migraine, and that evening he suffered a stroke. Luckily he was okay, but later had to have brain surgery once he had healed enough (we found out that he also had these cavernous malformations, and the stroke was due to one of the malformations bursting). I also have them. Every few years we have to have MRI’s done to see if any more have developed, shrunk, or grown.
Im curious as to whether Letang has ever had an MRI done to see if he might have these.

Great question. When he suffered his first stroke 8 years ago they stated it was due to a hole in his heart that would allow a clot to pass form one side to the other. I would hope the doctors have exhausted every avenue to diagnose the issue, including running his brain through an MRI.

I'm sorry to hear of your families condition, hope you stay well and live a long life.. Can they see the condition with a regular MRI or do they have to perform any special processing or analyzation to diagnose it?

 

[Pancakes]

Hi, I’m a diehard Leafs fan, but I come in peace. I’m curious about Letang and his recent stroke, even more so because of the migraine he was also experiencing at the time (I may be wrong on the migraine). About 7 years ago our oldest son, who was teaching in Northern Quebec at the time, suffered a brain bleed, and had to be airlifted to the hospital at McGill University. It was then that we found out he had “cavernous malformations”, which are basically tiny blood vessels in your brain that are tangled up. They are about the size of a raspberry. This was the result of an inherited gene, passed down on my mother’s side of the family. It was very serious, and we were extremely lucky and grateful that he didn’t die from the bleed. It couldn’t be operated on because it had occurred in the brain stem.
Then, about a year later, our youngest son, who was doing his post grad in Saskatoon, had a bad migraine, and that evening he suffered a stroke. Luckily he was okay, but later had to have brain surgery once he had healed enough (we found out that he also had these cavernous malformations, and the stroke was due to one of the malformations bursting). I also have them. Every few years we have to have MRI’s done to see if any more have developed, shrunk, or grown.
Im curious as to whether Letang has ever had an MRI done to see if he might have these.

Sorry to hear about your family. That must be very hard to deal with. I hope you and your boys have long healthy lives ahead.

As far as Letang goes, I imagine they ran every conceivable test after his last stroke. Letang is a millionaire and is going to have access to the absolute best medical care money can buy. I don't know what tests they've run with him but I can't imagine they've left anything to chance.

 

[Scandale du Jour]

Yeah, the Dupuis saga was really sad like that. You could tell that he wrapped up his entire life in playing the game and was terrified of not being a "Hockey Player" anymore, even if it meant serious injury or leaving his family grieving. The whole saga of lying to the doctors was insane. On the one hand, I sympathize with that, it's a hard thing to give up, emotionally. On the other hand, man, if that was my dad, I'd be screaming at him to just retire, plus furious he was lying to me and his doctors.

I worry about that with Letang too, but I think he seems to have a better support system, plus being an elite guy instead of a grinder who became The Man for Sid... I feel like I trust Letang and his people to make a better decision than Dupuis, for what it's worth.

And hell yeah, people should always value the health and well-being of workers, it sucks that they don't and that's one of the foundational lessons of Pittsburgh history.


Yeah, of course, they're not at all the same, thank god. I totally agree with this. Like I say up thread, I trust Letang way more to make a reasonable and informed decision about his health. The Dupuis thing was just frankly sad and depressing, even after the team tried spinning it as "oh, but he's such a ~~wArRiOr!~~" which was insulting.

Letang himself, no. He cannot even get his tires changed. He is that dumb.

His family? Maybe. His mother-in-law is a nurse and she is the one who saved him the first time.

 

[Seattle King]

Letang will be back. He skated today. "I had a stroke a couple of days ago but I feel like doing some ice skating" is not something normal people do.
The question is will it be more or less than the 72 days he missed last time this happened.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

Yeah but his would likely be treatable with penicillin.

Work with me here mate...

 

[3ladesof5teel]

We dont know the scope of any of this. He could have just a good a chance having a stroke if he would retire and sit on his couch all day like many people do.

He is a professional athlete and one of the better conditioned at that in his trade. He knows his limits and so do his Dr's. The people calling for him to retire are pretty silly. If it was life and death he would retire, if its not we will likely see him again.

There are people with high blood pressure that walk around everyday like ticking time bombs that could have a heart attack or stroke that could benefit from some some exercise. These same people are encouraged to exercise.

Kris Letang playing hockey may or may not be the difference of him having a stroke.

 

[Gurglesons]

Letang himself, no. He cannot even get his tires changed. He is that dumb.

His family? Maybe. His mother-in-law is a nurse and she is the one who saved him the first time.

lol.

 

[Scandale du Jour]

lol.

Funny story.

My friend works for a dealership who often gives cars to drive to Québécois players and Letang was one of them.

Letang got a flat and called them asking them what to do. They tell him to call a tow truck and get it to the closest dealership of the same brand. Letang says: "What if they recognize me?"

He ended up leaving the car there and they had to have it towed. Letang cannot (or won't) manage a flat tire by himself.

 

[Gurglesons]

Funny story.

My friend works for a dealership who often gives cars to drive to Québécois players and Letang was one of them.

Letang got a flat and called them asking them what to do. They tell him to call a tow truck and get it to the closest dealership of the same brand. Letang says: "What if they recognize me?"

He ended up leaving the car there and they had to have it towed. Letang cannot (or won't) manage a flat tire by himself.

Is this how that legendary HF post came about

 

[Scandale du Jour]

Is this how that legendary HF post came about

Could be

 

[Honour Over Glory]

Letang is already back on the ice.

That's both concerning and good to hear.

Is this how that legendary HF post came about

Which post?