ST. LOUIS -- St. Louis Blues defenseman Alex Pietrangelo recalled the day he was in the hospital with his childhood friend and the two were playing Pokemon.
Pietrangelo was 10; his friend Cosmo was 11.
As kids, they were supposed to be enjoying life without a worry in the world. But one day, Cosmo was gone; he succumbed to cancer, and Pietrangelo, who like many NHL players have stories to tell of experiences with the disease, was left to wonder why his friend was no longer around.
"That was the one thing I remember for some reason," Pietrangelo said.