To the Hockey and Buffalo Communities,
I want to share with you a traumatic experience that my fiancée, Carolina, and our families experienced this offseason.
While on vacation in France early this summer, Carolina began to feel sick for a few days, which quickly turned into her experiencing major heart failure. Fortunately, she received CPR on multiple occasions, and up to a couple of hours at a time to keep her alive, which ultimately saved her life. Without her receiving lifesaving CPR, the result would have been unimaginable. It is hard to even think about the worst-case scenario.
She was transferred to a hospital where she remained on life support for weeks before she was a beneficiary of a heart transplant while still in France.
Carolina and I would both like to extend our heartfelt thank you to the tremendous nurses, doctors, and rehabilitation staff at the Hospital Centre of Antibes Juan– Les– Pins, Hôpitaux Universitaires de Marseille, the Sahlgrenska Hospital in Gothenburg and the Hogsbo Rehabilitation Center. Without the incredible commitment, expertise, care, and sensitivity of all the people who treated Carolina, we would not be in the position that we are in today, with Carolina recovering well and on the path to a full recovery.
We also want to extend our gratitude to the NHLPA and the NHL for the incredible support and efforts they made for us during this incredibly difficult time. We are so grateful for the commitment of Dr. Scott Delaney of the NHLPA, who went above and beyond to ensure that not only was Carolina receiving the best medical treatment possible, but also comforting our families while ensuring we understood what was going on.
We are also extremely thankful for the support of Terry and Kim Pegula, along with the entire Pegula family, Kevyn Adams, Lindy Ruff, and the Sabres organization, who did everything possible to support us during this difficult time and showed how much they truly cared for us.
Additionally, we would like to thank Craig Oster and Newport Sports for their continued guidance and support.
While Carolina is still working through her rehab to return to be with me in Buffalo, she has demonstrated an incredible determination, spirit, positivity, and resilience that I am in awe of. This has undoubtedly been the most challenging chapter of our lives, however it is something that we have learned so much from. We will continue to grow from these experiences and are so grateful for all the love and support we have received. We are truly blessed in so many ways and fully realize how fortunate we are.
We share all this with you in hopes that we can all appreciate our experiences, the people closest to us, and the importance of fully living each day.
We want to spotlight the importance of CPR treatment, CPR training, organ donation, and heart-related issues that impact so many people and families around the world. We want to recognize the tireless and oftentimes thankless efforts of emergency and healthcare professionals everywhere. We cannot say thank you enough to all organ donors, and are appreciative beyond words for the new life that organ donation has provided to Carolina.
We hope that we can all reflect on how fortunate we are to have the people and experiences that we share together every single day.
As Carolina continues to recover, I know she is going to attack rehabilitation with the same fighter spirit she always has. Along with our community in Sweden, both the Buffalo and hockey communities have embraced Carolina and I over the years, and we know they will continue to do so. Truly, we cannot say thank you enough for the continued support and we ask for continued privacy as Carolina continues on the path to a full recovery.
Rasmus Dahlin and Carolina Matovac
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