from Emily Kaplan of ESPN,
In a restaurant nestled in the lobby of the Hyatt Hotel, Rickard Rakell sits down for lunch with his guest, Katie Hawley. He's the Anaheim Ducks' All-Star, a 24-year-old Swedish center who leads his team with 36 points this season. She's a 17-year-old California girl who loves shopping sprees and the beach. He made his NHL debut at 19 and has yet to finish his high school degree; she's taking time off from AP classes and writing college scholarship essays to be in Tampa.
But as Rakell picks at braised short ribs and Hawley munches on a burger, any perceived difference between them melts away. They realize that they're both close to their mothers; Rakell FaceTimes his mom, Annika, who's back in Sweden, every night. Not only do both Rickard and Katie like sitcoms, especially Modern Family, but they also both watch them with subtitles. That's the way Rakell became accustomed to watching American TV shows growing up in Sweden. Hawley does so because her hearing isn't so great these days.
Over the next hour, conversation comes easily for the two, as Rakell does everything he can to make Hawley smile. When she laments that she's "never been a typical high school girl," Rakell deadpans: "Don't worry. Neither have I."
Hawley has been battling cancer since she was 9.
Below, watch Katie on the ice at the ASG along with a link to a few YouTube videos...
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