Craig Cunningham's life changed on Nov. 19, when he suffered an acute cardiac arrest ventricular fibrillation that came very close to ending his life.
The incident occurred moments before Cunningham was to play in a game for the Tucson Roadrunners, the AHL affiliate of the Arizona Coyotes. Trainers and firefighters - who were at the game to play the national anthem using bagpipes - literally saved his life.
The 26-year-old's hockey career is over, but he's alive, and thankful, and revealed to ESPN's Craig Custance that his recovery included having part of his left leg amputated.
Custance writes:
On Dec. 24, fearful that an infection would complicate Cunningham's recovery, doctors amputated part of his left leg. He still has most of his leg, and he fully expects to function normally once he's fitted with prosthetics after the healing is done. But he has come to so completely trust the doctors who have cared for him that he didn't question the decision.
They said it was best to remove it. So they removed it.
Cunningham is focusing on the positives, Custance writes, mainly that he is alive, even if it means part of his left leg is gone, and that his playing days are done.
"If I have to sacrifice playing hockey to be alive - and it's a tough pill to swallow for sure, it's been my whole life since I was four years old - it's time for me to move on," Cunningham said.
Cunningham requested that Custance not make the partial amputation the focus of his piece, and Custance obliged, as Cunningham looks to focus on the positives of an incredibly difficult situation.
After 63 games in the NHL over three seasons, Cunningham is choosing to look forward, focusing on the people that helped him stay alive, and his family, who he's never been closer to.
"I'm really appreciating life," he said. "Before, you don't think about how precious it really is. (Expletive), man, in an instant, everything can be taken from you."
Cunningham is hoping to be discharged from intensive care next week, and faces intense rehab in the near future. And that future includes, hopefully, a career working for an NHL team, instead of playing for one.
