And now this…

No sooner had all of New England rejoiced in the news that Jon Lester's non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma appears to be in remission, that we received the sad news from the Boston Bruins that their prized number one draft choice, Phil Kessel, had cancer surgery earlier in the week. This must be devastating for the young man and his family, let alone for his teammates. To be 19 years old, a gifted athlete, a millionaire, and to have the entire world at your feet must be a wonderful thing. Throw all nonsense that out the window! This is a kid scared out of his wits, a matter of life and death we're talking about. That’s why the news of any young person being struck down with a life-threatening illness is especially tough to bear.

...speaking of the "news", how despicable was it for the local media to try to sniff out the exact nature of the kid's illness? Especially after the fact that his family made it clear that they wanted their privacy respected. The last time I checked, there were still federal laws on the books ("HIPAA") that prohibited the dissemenation of a patient's medical information. Whatever happened to respecting a family's privacy?

Hopefully, "Phil The Thrill" will be able move on with his life and participate in the activity he loves most of all. Speaking for hockey lovers everywhere, we send out our very best wishes to Phil for speedy recovery and best wishes for the future.