from Ryan S. Clark of The Athletic,

A white blanket shrouds Axl Quincey’s stroller that sits next to his parents on the front porch of their Denver house.

Rachel Quincey has her hands on the stroller while her husband and longtime NHL defenseman, Kyle Quincey, stretches his long legs in the chair next to her. Their oldest son, Stone, 2, climbs on his mom and then settles down in a comfortable spot. Laying between Kyle and Rachel is Zeppelin, the lovably large and loyal dark brown Chesapeake Bay Retriever who is as easy going as it gets. Eventually, the blanket is removed and 14-month-old Axl emerges, with his rosy cheeks and big smile the most immediate features on display.

The hope for the Quinceys is to have more days like this.

A few days after this the entire family boarded a cross-country flight to Philadelphia, because Axl is having another surgery on an Ependymoma tumor discovered when he was diagnosed with brain cancer in late March.

Axl went through his first surgery on April 2, while recently completing his second round of induction chemotherapy.

“So this is the big one,” Rachel explained of the surgery scheduled for June 10. “Your first thought is ‘Who’s the best surgeon to remove this tumor? I will go to the ends of the earth to find the best surgeon.’

continued (paid subscription)...