After enduring a season full of trials and tribulations, Kris Letang has earned the Penguins' nomination for the 2023 Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy. The award goes to a player who best exemplifies qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to ice hockey.
This is the fourth time Letang has been nominated for the award. It is given annually by the Professional Hockey Writers Association. A player from each team is nominated by the local chapter.
"It's something to take pride in, being able to bring it every day," Letang said Saturday in Detroit when speaking of the nomination following the Penguins' win there that day. "That's how I was raised, also, to never back down from a challenge or to never quit when you’re down. My parents, my family, they're the big supporters."
His 2022-23 campaign got off to a bit of a bumpy start on the ice, as his effectiveness wasn't quite at the level he or the Penguins had hoped for. Amid his early-season struggles, he suffered the second stroke of his life. It was, however, considerably less severe than the one he suffered eight years prior.
One night, Letang realized he wasn't feeling right, so he alerted his symptoms to head athletic trainer Chris Stewart. It was then that Letang was booked for an MRI right away, revealing the stroke.
In a surprise to no one who knows how much he loves hockey, Letang was eagerly asking how soon he could return to the ice just a day after the stroke. Mike Sullivan said it was a challenge to keep him from hitting the ice for a skate over the following days.
Exactly 10 days after the stroke, Letang returned to practice with his teammates. Two days later, he returned to the lineup at home against the Sabres, logging 22:14 of ice-time.
"He's a freakin' hockey junkie," a high-ranking member of the Penguins' front office told me.
However, the stroke was just the beginning of the adversity life was about to throw his way.
He played in eight games following the stroke before blocking a shot with his leg or foot on Dec. 28 against the Red Wings. He finished the game and logged a season-high 34 shifts, but landed on the shelf due to injury a day later.
Fast-forward several days, Letang and his family made the trip to Boston with the team for the Winter Classic on Jan. 2 at Fenway Park. The day before the game, he learned that his father, Claude Fouquet, had passed away at age 77 back home in Montreal. He and his family then traveled to Montreal while the Penguins played in the Winter Classic before embarking on a two-game trip out west to Las Vegas and Tempe, Ariz. The entire team flew from Phoenix to Montreal at the conclusion of the trip to support Letang at Mr. Fouquet's funeral.
In a showing of class and respect, the Penguins allowed Letang to stay in Montreal and spend as much time as he needed to grieve with his family. He eventually returned to the team on Jan. 17, but he was still dealing with a lower-body injury. A week and a few practices later, he once again returned to the lineup at home against the Panthers and, adding to the drama, played the hero in that one, capping a four-point night by scoring the overtime-winner while playing 26:29.
In 33 games since returning, he's scored nine goals and recorded 23 points. Beyond the production, the Penguins have performed very well with him on the ice at 5-on-5 during those games, as they've scored 55.2% of the goals and controlled 56.5% of the expected goals.
In other words, he's been back at the elite level everyone's come to expect from him.
What struck his teammates and coaches alike was the way he navigated the adversity. When listening to him reflect on it all, it's easy to see how he served some inspiration to everyone around him.
"You know when hard times happen, it always gets better," Letang said. "You don’t want to think right on the spot when these bad things happen because I don’t think you’re actually weighing the good and the bad. You’re just acting or thinking on the situation that you’re going through at the moment. Obviously there are some tough times, there’s emotional times, but at the end of the day, I always thought that I was going to push through it and be able to come on the other side and be the same, or better."
Still, Letang is immensely grateful for the support he received from his teammates and the organization during each and every challenge he faced.
"It was huge," he said of their support. "It's been happening for a lot of years, not only this year. I can count on a lot of good friends. Obviously Sid, Geno have been with me for 17 years, so these two guys, they've always been there for me. And they also know what it's like to not be able to play or going through tough times. Their support, the family, my wife, the kids, they make everything lighter. I can go home and you see your kids, they don't care about hockey, they just want to see you. It kind of makes you think about other stuff.
"The organization always helped me out to seek the best doctors, tried to put me in the best spot to get better. Both ownerships that I got throughout my career, they didn't try to save any money or anything. They tried to get me the best treatment and everything they could for me to get better."
Letang has never been one to shy away from the cold-hard details specifically regarding his strokes. That, he said, is because they can fly under the radar despite being more prevalent than many realize.
"I was public with the stroke because I think it's something that it's way more common than people think," he said. "But it can be overlooked and not really paid attention to because it can look harmless. People kind of just go on with their life. But there's things to do if you want to be able to not have another stroke or something else. I think that was the reason why I was so public about it."
The list of players nominated for the Masterton Trophy will be narrowed down to three finalists before a winner is later selected. It would be Letang's first time winning the award.
