LCS Hockey - Cullen Sent to Cleveland

Cullen Sent to Cleveland
by Seth Lerman, Tampa Bay Correspondent

This time last season, John Cullen of the Tampa Bay Lightning was in a fight for his life after undergoing a bone marrow transplant. Many doubted the 34-year old center from Fort Erie, Ontario would ever play professional hockey again. But Cullen proved everybody wrong by making the Lightning's roster after an impressive training camp.

On the night of the Lightning's home opener against the New York Islanders, Cullen received a standing ovation when his name was announced as the starting center. For the Lightning, it was the only highlight of the evening as they lost 2-0.

Johnny Cullen

Johnny Cullen
by Meredith Martini

"At the beginning it was great. Everybody showed their support and got real loud. I remember the first day I stepped on the ice last year at training camp. I remember my first exhibition game, and this game, especially because I got to play in front of the fans in Tampa. The way they supported me through the last year-and-a-half has been overwhelming at times, and I really appreciate it," said Cullen.

For Cullen, the road back to the NHL has been a long and sometimes painful one. After being diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in 1997, Cullen underwent extensive chemotherapy to eliminate a tumor in his chest. When this procedure did not work, his bone marrow was harvested from his body and reintroduced at a later date.

Immediately following the procedure, Cullen's heart stopped as he was being wheeled back to his room. It took doctors more than a minute to regain a pulse. At that time it was doubtful that Cullen, a father of a three-year old daughter, would ever play hockey again.

"I still have a battle for recovery with the big 'C' word," said Cullen. "It takes a couple of years to clear your mind, but for me to start training camp, and to play in a couple of games, it sure makes my recovery process a lot more enjoyable.

"If I wasn't playing the game, maybe I would think about it a lot more. Now, I really have to concentrate on hockey. Sometimes I think 'was that me?', but now I can sit here and talk about the game, and that is a lot more fun."

Since Cullen last played for the Lightning, there have been quite a few changes. There is a new owner, a new general manager and coach, and fifteen new players. But one thing is for certain, it does not matter how many shifts or how many goals Cullen scores this season, it's the fact that he has rebounded from a serious illness that makes him special in the minds of his fans.

Sadly, John Cullen is not the only athlete in recent history to battle cancer. Former teammate Mario Lemieux, and golfer Paul Azinger have also fought the dreaded disease and both returned to their sport.

On the eve of their playoffs, Major League Baseball was shocked at the news of Darryl Strawberry's announcement that he will have to undergo surgery for colon cancer. When asked what advice he can give Strawberry, Cullen replied: "I would tell him to stay positive, have some kind of hope, some faith. I am not sure if he knows about my story, but I went through the most extensive treatment anybody can go through with cancer. I was telling somebody this morning that he (Strawberry) got lucky because his best friend (Eric Davis of the Baltimore Orioles) just went through it, and look at the year Eric Davis had, it was amazing.

"When I was diagnosed with Lymphoma, I had a chance to talk with Paul Azinger, who also had Lymphoma, and Mario Lemieux, who had Hodgkin's Disease. They both came back to play and that helped me in my recovery."

Although Cullen has made a return to the ice, his time with the Lightning was a brief one. He appeared in four games and failed to register a point. On October 26, he was assigned to the Cleveland Lumberjacks of the International Hockey League after refusing an offer to remain with the Lightning as an assistant coach.

The Lightning signed Cullen to a one-year, $500,000 contract last month. The agreement contained clauses that would pay him $300,000 if he played in at least 50 games and another $200,000 if he was one of the team's top three scorers. The coaching position would pay him $110,000. Lightning general manager and coach Jacques Demers said the offer of an assistant coaching position is still open if Cullen changes his mind about playing.

Cullen, a two-time All-Star, was the Lightning's third-leading scorer during the 1996-97 season, with 18 goals and a team-leading 37 assists in 70 games. In nine NHL seasons, he has 197 goals and 362 assists in 617 games with the Lightning, Pittsburgh Penguins, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Hartford Whalers.