Hours earlier he had sworn off alcohol, which had derailed his once-promising hockey career. But then his stomach started to burn and he began coughing up blood, the result of problems brought on by his drinking.
His livelihood, his health and his future all seemed to be slipping through his fingers at the same time. So Setoguchi bellied up to the bar, crawled back into a bottle of Irish whiskey and started to cry.
His flight left without him.
Four days later Setoguchi took one final drink, then walked through the doors of a rehab center in Malibu.