from Emily Kaplan of ESPN,
It began late last fall, when he began coughing up blood. It would happen randomly for New York Rangers winger Chris Kreider. For a few days, he'd be symptom-free. Then Kreider would wake up and spew blood, then break out in coughing fits throughout the day that he describes as "pretty gruesome."
The 27-year-old knew something wasn't right. When he was on the ice, he sometime felt a shortness of breath -- like his cardio wasn't all there -- and sustained light-headedness, too. But it was the time of year where everyone would get sick, especially road-weary professional hockey players, so he didn't blame doctors for a misdiagnosis of pneumonia.
Two days after Christmas, Kreider woke up and felt numbness in his right arm. He examined his arm at his house, and couldn't help but think it looked discolored. It was game day -- the Rangers were hosting the Washington Capitals -- so when Kreider arrived to the rink for morning skate, he received treatment. But when he returned later that night for the game, his arm looked twice its normal size -- and purple. He logged seven shifts in the first period, and when he returned to the locker room and took his gloves off, his arm was now three times its size. Team doctors examined, and sent him right to the hospital.
That's when he first heard the words "blood clots."
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