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Golden Knights Pietrangelo Returns, Explains Scary Family Situation

Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Alex Pietrangelo has returned from his nine-game absence from the team. Pietrangelo was absent from the team due to personal…

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Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Alex Pietrangelo has returned from his nine-game absence from the team. Pietrangelo was absent from the team due to personal reasons; his four-year-old daughter, Evelyn, was having serious health issues.

"I am sure there are a lot of people wondering what personal reasons means… Over Thanksgiving, my daughter got sick, my four-year-old. She had the flu, and that turned into what we call encephalitis, which then creates a legion on the brain she basically lost all motor skills and functions, eating, walking, and talking; the first five days, she basically couldn't even open her eyes," said Pietrangelo.

Thankfully, Evelyn is doing much better and is expected to make a full recovery.

"She came home three days ago, woke up, and just said, screw it; I am just going to try and walk. We were thinking that it would be months down the road when this was going to happen, but yesterday, she just kept walking and walked in circles for a full day… God answered our prayers, and it is a miracle how much she has come along in the last 48 hours," said Pietrangelo.

Pietrangelo also mentioned that there is still a lot of work to be done for Evelyn to make a complete recovery and noted that he will likely have to miss some practices and morning skates in the future.

"There are still months and months of extensive rehab to get her back to where she was when all of this happened. But as a family, that is something we are going to have to work through," said Pietrangelo.

Pietrangelo said the support from the Golden Knights and the team at Sunrise Children's Hospital was unbelievable in their support.

"I gotta give the team at Sunrise Children's (a shoutout) they were unbelievable. They were upfront with us and helped us take the course of action we, as parents, felt was the right thing… Bill (Foley), Kelly (McCrimmon), George (McPhee), and these guys (Golden Knights teammates) have been unbelievable. From the beginning, when I made the phone call, they understood. There was no hesitation in allowing me to stay back with my family."

The Golden Knights were without Pietrangelo for nine games, two road trips, and twenty overall days from the Golden Knights.

"I said I wouldn't go back to work until I felt comfortable where she is at home. I said to my wife that if it takes a year to get her back to where we want her to be, then so be it. Because there is more to life than some things. It would have been impossible to play with what was going on before. Your head is not in the right place. I feel like it is now," said Pietrangelo, who also mentioned that he was able to skate and stay sharp during this time.P

Pietrangelo and the Golden Knights will take on the New York Islanders at 7:00 p.m. at home on Saturday.

Here's the full media availability from Petro.