Article: NOWAK HANGS UP SKATES; CRUNCH PLAYER RETIRES IN PRIME OF HIS CAREER FOLLOWING SURGERY FOR TESTICULAR CANCER.(Sports)

Byline: Lindsay Kramer Staff writer

Near the end of the Syracuse Crunch's practice on the evening of Dec. 26, forward Mark Hartigan playfully took his stick and tapped teammate Brett Nowak in the groin area.

In terms of hockey communication, that can be a form of encouragement. In this instance, it might have saved Nowak's life.

"At the time I was mad," said Nowak, a center. "Looking back, I was happy he did it."

The light knock hurt Nowak a lot, much more than it normally should have. Nowak, 24, immediately had the area checked out. Doctors' examinations revealed the reason for the pain was that Nowak had testicular cancer.

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