Oilers playoff run helping Sask. family through their baby's extended hospital stay

A hospital room in Saskatoon has become a cheering section for perhaps the youngest and tiniest fan of the Edmonton
Oilers.

Baby Mark's hospital bed at the Jim Pattison Children's Hospital is adorned with orange and blue memorabilia, including a hockey stick, pucks and a sign that reads Baby's 1st Stanley Cup Playoff.

The fourth-generation Oilers fan is just shy of three months old and weighs in at five pounds.

He's been in hospital since he was born 12 weeks premature at just two pounds, hooked up to ventilation and breathing tubes.

The last few months have been tough for Mark's parents, Katelyn and Tyson Lay, and his older brother, two-year-old John.

"We're trying to focus on the positive. Take it day by day and celebrate the wins. Mark's a fighter," Katelyn Lay said in a phone interview Wednesday from the hospital.

The family has formed a special bond with the hospital's nurses, who have provided endless care and information during Mark's hospitalization. During a recent conversation, Lay told one nurse that Mark and his father were excited for the Stanley Cup final, as they are diehard Oilers fans.

The team is heading into Game 3 on Thursday against the Florida Panthers for the National Hockey League's top prize.

"I mentioned how my husband's just a huge fan, and the next day there was handmade decorations everywhere, and they just lit up the room," said Lay, 28.

The nurse decorated Mark's bed with small signs with the Oilers logo and other memorabilia. His parents also purchased the smallest jersey they could find, which fits more like a blanket on the wee one, and held a photo shoot on Monday.

"It's pretty unbelievable, because it just kind of takes your mind off of your situation and try to get some normalcy,"