You almost don’t recognize him as he walks through the dressing room. Is that Kris Letang? Gone are the long locks that used to spill out of his helmet. He looks young. But ask why he cut his hair, and he laughs.

“Getting older,” he says. “I’m just getting old.”

The man has aged years in months.

He had a stroke at 26 – rare for anyone, let alone a professional athlete. He sat out 10 weeks. He returned to play for the Pittsburgh Penguins, after doctors assured him hockey did not cause the stroke and would not increase his chances of another. He pushed himself harder than usual over the summer, anyway, just to make sure his body could handle it.

He’s 27 now. He feels good. He’s entering an eight-year, $58 million contract extension. He has a new coach, Mike Johnston, who preaches puck possession, and a new defense partner, Christian Ehrhoff, who can skate and pass, and both suit his skill set. Yet to say he’s back to normal isn’t quite right.

This is a new normal for him. He is dealing with the migraines he has had since childhood, monitoring himself for stroke symptoms, taking medications for both issues every day and talking to doctors often – all while trying to regain the form that made him a finalist for the Norris Trophy as the NHL’s best defenseman two seasons ago.

He isn’t afraid to play hockey. He’s eager to play hockey.

But that doesn’t mean he isn’t afraid.

“Yes, I’m worried every day,” Letang says in a matter-of-fact tone. “The percentage of that happening was point zero one percent. So the percentage of that happening again for me is still there. It happened once. Why not twice? That’s always in the back of my mind.”

* * * * *

The morning of Jan. 29, Letang’s wife, Catherine, woke up and found him on their bedroom floor. He was awake but couldn’t function. They didn’t realize what was going on. No one did. He felt well enough to fly with the team later that day, but not well enough to play against the Los Angeles Kings on Jan. 30 or the Phoenix Coyotes on Feb. 1.

View photos Doctors told Letang that hockey did not cause the stroke and would not increase his chances of another. (AP) More

“We didn’t know what it was,” says goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury. “We were kind of laughing at him. At first, it was no fear. And then when you find out …”

Pause.

“It’s humbling, I guess you would say.”

A series of tests showed Letang had a stroke.

Doctors explained how rare it was to have a stroke at his age – .01 percent. They told him they didn’t think he needed surgery to close a hole in his heart, a common condition and possible cause. They said he would be able to continue his NHL career.

Still, a stroke is a stroke. Letang and his wife have a son, Alex, who will turn 2 in November.

“It was pretty scary,” Letang says. “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.”

Even though the doctors insisted the risk was no greater on the ice than it was on the street, it was hard to overcome the fear – not just for Letang, but for the people who cared about him. Doctors cleared him to play long before Ray Shero, the general manager at the time, would let him return to the lineup April 9 against the Detroit Red Wings. Letang had to bug him.

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