PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – The Penguins confirm that defenseman Kris Letang suffered a stoke last week.

There were reports last week that an unknown illness could put Letang’s season, if not his career, in jeopardy. However, the teams says the stroke “is not believed to be career threatening.”

Officials with the team said Friday morning that Letang will be out for the next six weeks and that he will be treated with blood thinners.

“Kris had one brief episode of dizziness and nausea last week,” General Manager Ray Shero said in a statment. “We held him out of the Los Angeles game Thursday night, and when he continued to feel ill, tests conducted in Phoenix on Saturday gave us the first indication of his condition. Further testing then was conducted when he returned to Pittsburgh, and he continued to undergo a battery of tests here this week.”

The team says doctors found a hole in the wall of Letang’s heart, which has been there since birth — which could be what caused the stroke.

Former NHL GM Craig Button joined Ron Cook to talk about the Letang news and where the team goes from here: