Report: Borje Salming No Longer Able to Speak as Maple Leafs Legend Continues Battle with ALS
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Swedish newspaper Expressen reports that ALS has limited the Hall-of-Famer to communication with an iPad.
Borje Salming knew his battle with ALS was going to be a difficult one. Now it appears the disease has left the Toronto Maple Leafs legend unable to speak.
In a heartbreaking story in Swedish national newspaper Expressen, Author Johan Eriksson begins his piece by stating that Salming is using an iPad to speak for him as a means to communicate with those around him.
“’I am thinking of you,’ the iPad says to those around him before he bursts into tears,” according to a google translation of an excerpt from an opening graph.
On Aug. 10, Salming revealed via statement from the Toronto Maple Leafs that he had been diagnosed with the disease for which there is no cure.
“The signs that indicated that something was wrong in my body turned out to be the disease ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. In an instant, everything changed. I do not know how the days ahead will be, but I understand that there will be challenges greater than anything I have ever faced. I also recognize that there is no cure but there are numerous worldwide trials going on and there will be a cure one day. In the meantime, there are treatments available to slow the progression and my family and I will remain positive,” Salming said in the statement.
“Since I started playing ice hockey as a little kid in Kiruna, and throughout my career, I have given it my all. And I will continue to do so.
“Right now, I rest assured that I have my loving family around me and the best possible medical care.
The Expressen article details what Salming’s life has been like since the diagnosis from issues with customs over getting the right medication and the frustration and anger both he and his wife, Pia, have had trying to get the right help.
“It’s a pain every day to see how bad Borje is,” Pia said.
The article also details the first sign Salming knew something wasn’t quite right with his body. In February, he noticed his muscles began to twitch in an unusual way.
Salming spent 16 of his 17 NHL seasons with the Maple Leafs and is a trailblazer for being among the first European players to come over to the NHL and make a significant impact. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1996.
In 2014, the Maple Leafs added Salming to Legends Row. A statue of him was placed alongside other star alumni outside of Scotiabank Arena.
We at the ‘Inside the Maple Leafs’ group are wishing the very best for Salming and his family during a difficult point in his life.