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Training camps are about to open for NHL teams within the next week or so, but one Nashville Predators prospect has a more important battle to focus on than the one to make the team.
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Austin Roest, a 2023 sixth-round draft pick, shared in an emotional message on Instagram that his girlfriend, Milara Okabe, has been diagnosed with stage 4 cancer.
Roest posted two photos of himself getting close with Okabe as she lay in a hospital bed.
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“Milly, I don’t even know what to say. I am so sorry this is happening to you. No one deserves to go through this,” he captioned the post. “That being said, I have no doubt in my mind you will beat cancer. You are the strongest person I know and I know you will overcome everything that comes your way over the next year.
“I love you so much and I will be right there with you through all of this.”
Roest also shared a link to a GoFundMe page set up by Okabe’s friend, Kristin LeDuc, to help support the 22-year-old former figure skater through her treatment.
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According to the page, Okabe was diagnosed with stage 4 adenocarcinoma, which is a type of cancer that starts in the glandular cells that line the inside of organs. It’s unclear which of Okabe’s organs have been affected by the disease.
Who has helped out the couple?
The hockey community has provided an outpouring of support since Roest’s post, with the GoFundMe page having brought in more than $86,000 since being launched.
The Predators commented on the post, with the team saying it was “sending all our love.”
“You got this Milly- and Austin too. Sending healing vibes your way. Hang in there,” Hayley Wickenheiser wrote.
Jessica Fiala, wife of Kings forward Kevin Fiala, also shared some positive vibes while Anaheim Ducks goaltender Lukas Dostal donated $2,000 to the GoFundMe.
Who is Austin Roest?
Roest played five seasons of junior hockey with the Everett Silvertips in the WHL and was drafted in 2023 after posting a career-high 78 points in 60 games.
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He attended Predators camp last fall, but spent the entire 2025-26 season in the minors, splitting time between the club’s AHL and ECHL farm teams in Milwaukee and Atlanta, respectively.
It’s unclear if he’ll be with the team when camps open next week.
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