Kraken Fan Who Alerted Canucks Equipment Manager to Cancer Found After Twitter Post
January 1, 2022
The Seattle Kraken fan who alerted Vancouver Canucks assistant equipment manager Brian "Red" Hamilton of a malignant melanoma on his neck has been found.
Hamilton released a statement through the Canucks explaining how a fan attending the Oct. 23 game in Seattle got his attention and wrote a message expressing concern that he may have a malignant melanoma.
The fan's instincts were accurate, and the melanoma is now gone.
Vancouver #Canucks @Canucks<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/HockeyTwitter?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#HockeyTwitter</a>, we need your help!<br><br>Please RT to spread the word and help us connect Red with the woman he considers his hero. <a href="https://t.co/HlZybgOnjf">pic.twitter.com/HlZybgOnjf</a>
Within hours, the fan, who is a member of the "Ladies of the Kraken" Facebook group, was found:
Jodi Murphy @JMurphFBThe woman has been found in our <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ladiesoftheKraken?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ladiesoftheKraken</a> group on Facebook. She will be reaching out to the team! <a href="https://twitter.com/lasvegaspokers?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@lasvegaspokers</a> ❤️ <a href="https://t.co/9bAqS8m0FP">pic.twitter.com/9bAqS8m0FP</a>
Vancouver #Canucks @CanucksThe internet community helped us find Brian's hero, Nadia, and tonight they met in person where he got to express his sincerest thank you to her for saving his life. <br><br>A story of human compassion at its finest. <a href="https://t.co/66ogo5hB1a">pic.twitter.com/66ogo5hB1a</a>
The interaction occurred during the expansion team's home debut.
Hamilton spoke with the media after the fan was identified:
Vancouver #Canucks @Canucks"She extended my life. I've got a wonderful family. I've got a wonderful daughter. She saved my life."<br><br>🗣 Part 1 of Brian "Red" Hamilton's interview with the media after finding the woman who he calls his hero <a href="https://t.co/t5sS8RCZPW">pic.twitter.com/t5sS8RCZPW</a>
Vancouver #Canucks @Canucks"She's the story. She's the person that did this. She saved the life. She needs to know her efforts were valid and bang on."<br><br>🗣 Part 2 of Brian "Red" Hamilton's interview involving the heroic Seattle fan <a href="https://t.co/Sbh7Jmugcv">pic.twitter.com/Sbh7Jmugcv</a>
"She extended my life, she saved my life," Hamilton said Saturday, per ESPN's Kristen Shilton.
"She didn't take me out of a burning car like [in] the big stories but she took me out of a slow fire. The words out of the doctor's mouth were if I ignored that for four to five years, I wouldn't be here. I didn't [even] know [the mole] was there. She pointed it out. How she saw it boggles my mind. It wasn't very big. I wear a jacket [on the bench], I wear a radio on the back of my jacket that hooks on, so the cords are there. Like, she's a hero."
The woman, identified as Nadia, is an aspiring doctor who was recently accepted into multiple medical schools, per Shilton.
She had just spent the night working at a suicide hotline and had plans to attend the Canucks at Kraken game Saturday.
A member of the Facebook group, Yukyung Nelson, made the connection:
"Oh my gosh!!! This was my daughter!!! She just got accepted into multiple medical schools. We have season tickets behind the opposing team and she noticed the mole on the back of his neck so she typed a message into her phone and knocked on the glass window to get his attention. She finally got his attention and he looked quickly and then nodded. We didn't think anymore of it. This is absolutely amazing!"
The Canucks are back in Seattle to take on the Kraken at Climate Pledge Arena on Saturday at 10 p.m. ET. The 47-year-old Hamilton, who has worked over 1,000 games for the Canucks over the past two decades, will be back behind the bench.