“So Sorry to Hear This”: Hockey World Left Concerned After Former NHL Star Provides a Grim Update

The Anaheim Ducks are having a poor NHL season but have been playing better as of late. Chances are grim but the Ducks have not yet been ruled out of the Stanley Cup playoffs. A message released on their official website read that Mike Stothers, the Ducks’s assistant coach and a former NHL player, was recently diagnosed with stage three melanoma of a lymph node. This comes as a devastating blow to the team.

The hockey community came together quickly after the Anaheim Ducks shared this message on their Facebook page. Meanwhile, the club has announced that Mike Stothers is now receiving care at UCI Health and will have surgery in the coming weeks.

A stroke of bad luck for the Anaheim Ducks

Even before he became a successful coach, Mike Stothers had a successful career as a player with experience not only in the National Hockey League (NHL) but also in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) and the American Hockey League (AHL). Just 30 games (12 with the Flyers and 18 with the Maple Leafs) have counted toward his NHL total. After the 1991–92 AHL season, Stothers retired as a player and immediately began coaching with his former team, the Hershey Bears. He became an assistant coach in the NHL with the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2000–01 season, and he has been with the Anaheim Ducks since the 2021-22 season.

Mike Stothers also sent out a few words for the fans, and said, “I want to thank all my family, friends, and the Ducks organization, led by our owners Henry and Susan Samueli, for their incredible support during this difficult period.” After thanking everybody for their support, Stothers also added, “If I could share one simple message to all: Listen to your body. If you notice something unusual, or don’t feel like yourself, consult a doctor immediately. Please do not wait. It could be the best decision you ever make.”

The NHL world came in to support the assistant coach

As soon as the official Anaheim Ducks Facebook page published the post, NHL fans flocked to the page in numbers. NHL fans are an emotional crowd. Upon hearing the news, many came around with words of encouragement to the comment section.

Out of all the cheerful comments left by fans, one fan said, “Sending love and positive thoughts for Coach.”

Another fan with the same concern left a comment, “So sorry to hear this, coach. Best wishes for a speedy, total recovery. Outr thoughts and prayers are with you.”

It looks like this fan has gone through the pain of losing a close one to this type of horrifying disease, and said, “A couple of days short for me of losing my sister to this…18 years ago…”

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This whole situation has united fans at such levels that it is now bigger than the sport, as this comment proves, which reads, “Sending love and prayers to Coach Stothers, his friends and family, and the entire Ducks organization from a Habs fan. This of course is bigger than hockey.”

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For more health updates about the assistant Ducks coach in the forthcoming times, stay connected.