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Stars welcome Dave Strader back from cancer fight with OT win (Video)

Sean Leahy
·Contributing writer
NHL
NHL

“Welcome to Dallas Stars hockey, I’m Dave Strader. Has it really been 283 days since I said that? How long I’ve waited to be here.”

Antoine Roussel recorded his first hat trick and Jamie Benn ended the game in dramatic fashion with an overtime winner, but the biggest story out of Saturday night’s Dallas Stars game was the return of Dave Strader to the broadcast booth.

Strader has missed the entire season as he fights bile duct cancer. But after doctors found a chemotherapy that allowed him to feel more energized and deal with fewer side effects, he felt healthy enough to return to the Stars’ booth for their next five home games. Game 1 was Saturday night against the Tampa Bay Lightning, and during a stoppage in play, the fans and players inside American Airlines Center paid tribute to the longtime NHL play-by-play man.

Despite his cancer fight, Strader hasn’t been kept away from the Stars this season. In November, when the team was in Detroit, he visited with them before their game with the Detroit Red Wings and read off the starting lineup in the dressing room.

The Stars begin their bye week on Sunday, which is why Strader picked Saturday night as his return date. During the break he can see how his body responds to being back to work, which hopefully will allow him to continue when the Dallas resumes play next Friday. And he picked a good game to return for.

“There was a time when I wasn’t sure I was going to get to call a game, so this is really great,” Strader told Mike Heika of the Dallas Morning News this week. “I feel good and I’m excited, and I just can’t wait to get going. I said to the doctor, ‘Let’s do this and enjoy it.'”

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Sean Leahy is the associate editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!

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