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Marian Hossa

Blackhawks’ Marian Hossa Announces End Of Playing Career

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Chicago Blackhawks star Marian Hossa, who sat out the 2017-18 season due to a skin disorder and the side effects of the medications that came with it, announced that his playing career is officially over to Slovakian site Novy cas, according to Chicago Sun Times’ Mark Lazerus. While Elite Prospects listed him as retired, The Athletic’s Scott Powers (subscription required) does not mention retirement, but adds that Hossa wants to join the Chicago Blackhawks’ front office in three years when his contract expires, suggesting that he will not file retirement paperwork until then, which would allow Chicago to keep the veteran on LTIR for the next three years.

“I will not play hockey anymore,” Hossa said. “I have a valid contract with Chicago for another three years, but I have only one health and it does not allow me to return.”

The 39-year-old played 19 seasons in the NHL, eight of which for the Blackhawks as a key contributor to three Stanley Cup titles. Hossa, a five-time all-star, has had a distinguished career as he’s posted 1,134 points in 1,309 games and has been touted as one of the best defensive forwards of the game. He had a productive season in 2016-17, his last, as he put up 26 goals and 19 assists.

General manager Stan Bowman confirmed at the end of the Blackhawks season last month that Hossa’s situation had not improved.

“What I do know is that his status is unchanged,” Bowman said. “His physical condition hasn’t improved, so at this point there’s no indication he’s going to play next year, either. That’s about all I know at this point. We’ll probably have more discussions on that in the coming weeks, but his medical condition is unchanged.”

Hossa, who has been listed on LTIR for the 2017-18 season, still has three years remaining on the 12-year, $63.3MM deal he signed in 2009, which counts for a $5.275MM cap hit. On LTIR, Chicago only has to pay $1MM in salary per season. Powers writes the team will likely attempt to trade Hossa to free themselves from his contract entirely.

Draft Notes: Mock Draft, Rangers, Canadiens, Sabres

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Now that the lottery portion of the 2018 NHL draft has clarified, TSN’s Craig Button has already released his first mock draft. No surprise, the Buffalo Sabres are projected to take defenseman Rasmus Dahlin. The Carolina Hurricanes are projected to take winger Andrei Svechnikov at No. 2, who Button compares to Marian Hossa and who could walk in and join Carolina immediately next season, aiding their struggling offense.

Wingers Filip Zadina and Brady Tkachuk are targeted to be taken at No. 3 and No. 4 by the Montreal Canadiens and Ottawa Senators, respectively, while the Arizona Coyotes are projected to select defenseman Quinn Hughes with the fifth pick, rounding out the top five.

  • While there is no shot at getting Dahlin, the New York Rangers have made it clear they want to move up in this year’s draft. With the eighth-worst record in the NHL this past season, the team moved back a spot in Saturday’s draft lottery. The Rangers have the ninth-overall pick in the 2018 NHL draft, but have after tearing down their team at the trade deadline, the team has quite a few assets to offer a team willing to trade down. The New York Post’s Larry Brooks writes the team is focusing on two teams, including the Ottawa Senators and Arizona Coyotes, two former trade partners, as potential landing spots at No. 4 and No. 5. While it’s considered to be a deep draft and the Rangers would get a quality player at No. 9, there is said to be a drop off around No. 4 or No. 5. The Rangers not only have the ninth-overall pick, but also have two other first-round picks, including the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Boston Bruins’ first-rounders, which could fall anywhere between 24 and 31. They also have two second and two third-round picks.
  • The Montreal Canadiens might also be a trade possibility for teams looking to move up. While the team had a couple of extra hours to imagine winning the lottery when they were among the top three first announced Saturday, the team ended up at No. 3. While there are plenty of high-quality wingers that would be available to the team, it doesn’t really help with the team’s top need, which is a big center, writes Stu Cowan of the Montreal Gazette. One interesting option would be if the Canadiens trade down or just reach for center Joe Veleno from the Drummondville Voltiguers of the QMJHL and was coached by Dominique Ducharme, who was just hired by Canadiens as an assistant coach. Cowan compares this situation to the 2016 draft when the Columbus Blue Jackets shocked everyone when they took Pierre-Luc Dubois with the third-overall pick, although no one is complaining now.
  • An interesting note from the Buffalo News’ Mike Harrington, the Buffalo Sabres won the lottery twice Saturday. They initially won the No. 1 pick and then again won the No. 3 pick. The No. 3 pick was then was redrawn, which allowed the Montreal Canadiens to move up.

Chicago Blackhawks Focused On Keeping Young Talent

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The Chicago Blackhawks have an interesting summer in front of them, as they try to turn around what was a disastrous season and compete again in 2018-19. The core of Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook and Corey Crawford will all be on the wrong side of 30 by the middle of November, making a rebuild out of the question.

Because of that group and how much cap space is needed to retain them, the Blackhawks have been forced to trade away young talent over the years. That’s not the plan anymore, as GM Stan Bowman explained to reporters today at an end-of-year press conference (via Mark Lazerus of the Chicago Sun-Times):

Our No. 1 priority as we move forward is to make sure we can keep these young players: [Alex] DeBrincat, [Nick] Schmaltz and [Vinnie] Hinostroza and some other young players. That’s the direction we’re headed.

While it’s true that the Stanley Cup-winning core is heading out of their prime, the young blood that has joined the team is something to look forward to. DeBrincat led the team with 28 goals as a rookie and would be getting more attention for the Calder trophy in a regular year (that is, one without the outstanding crop of first-year players the league has seen) while Schmaltz slid into a role beside Kane and recorded 52 points.

Only Hinostroza, who played only 50 games and recorded 25 points, is scheduled to become a restricted free agent this summer. His deal shouldn’t be financially crippling, especially because of the room afforded by Marian Hossa’s long-term injury. Bowman spoke on that as well, telling reporters that there is “no indication that he’s going to play next season.” 

With the cap increasing by somewhere around $5MM, the Blackhawks should have a little money to play with in free agency if they so choose. As Lazerus reports though, Chicago won’t be handing out any long-term deals—meaning they’ll probably be out of the running on most of the top names. While that may be disappointing, the team has to still think of where their salary structure will sit in a few seasons when Schmaltz, DeBrincat and others do need raises.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Western Notes: Blackhawks, Greenway, Horvat, Dahlen, Kovalchuk

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Don’t expect too many changes in the Chicago Blackhawks roster this season. At least that’s what Mark Lazerus of the Chicago Sun-Times writes as he examines the roster and the team’s salary cap flexibility.

Coach Joel Quenneville admitted that many things went wrong this year, but he believes that if the team comes back and all play better, the Blackhawks should return to the playoffs next season. Factor in the loss of Marian Hossa, the injury to goaltender Corey Crawford and some down years by several key players, perhaps a turnaround is possible.

“If we all collectively have better years in all aspects … I believe we’re very capable of [rebounding],” Quenneville said. “We’ve seen many games this year where we look like we could be a really good team. [It’s] just that consistency, putting that in place.”

Lazerus writes that the team should look into adding a top-four defenseman, but was quick to point out that it’s unlikely the team will go after Washington Capitals defenseman John Carlson as that pricetag would be too high even though it looks as if the Blackhawks should have considerable cap space. He also adds the team desperately needs to find a quality backup goaltender to avoid the problems the team had to endure during the second half of this season.

  • Sarah McLellan of the StarTribune writes that while the Minnesota Wild’s bottom line of Tyler Ennis, Matt Cullen and Charlie Coyle has been successful of late, but head coach Bruce Boudreau might break it up as it sounds like the coach is leaning towards starting rookie Jordan Greenway over Ennis. “I don’t know where he’s going to play [in the playoffs], but I’m sure I’ll find a spot,” Boudreau said.
  • Rick Dhaliwal of Sportsnet tweeted that Vancouver Canucks forward Bo Horvat received an invitation to play for Canada at the upcoming world championships in Denmark this summer.
  • Dhaliwal also adds that Vancouver Canucks prospect Jonathan Dahlen will rest for a few days before reporting to the Utica Comets of the AHL. Dahlen, a prospect the Canucks acquired at the trade deadline in 2016 for Alexandre Burrows, has been lighting up the Allvenskan league and helped lead his team Timra to be promoted to Sweden’s top tier league.
  • European reporter Alex Nunn tweeted that KHL star Ilya Kovalchuk has confirmed that he will spend the next two or three seasons in the NHL. Kovalchuk will be an unrestricted free agent on April 15, when he turns 35 years old.

Joffrey Lupul Fails Second Physical, Eligible For LTIR

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According to Chris Johnston of Sportsnet, the Toronto Maple Leafs will indeed be allowed to place Joffrey Lupul on long-term injured reserve, after the veteran forward failed a second physical administered by the league. Like Marian Hossa in Chicago, this ruling will provide Toronto with some cap relief, though the two situations are very different.

Joffrey LupulLupul hasn’t played with the team in several years, and caused a media uproar earlier this summer when he posted some comments seeming to call out the Maple Leafs for cheating the system. He later deleted them and apologized, explaining that it was just frustrating for him sitting on the sidelines. The Lupul saga has many reports of the team not wanting him around anyway, and that they were willing to eat his contract to keep him off the team.

Interestingly, CapFriendly just this morning released a new full explanation of the ways you can use LTIR but if you aren’t interested in the minutia of the rule just know that the Maple Leafs are at little risk of going over the cap this season thanks to Lupul and fellow injured forward Nathan Horton. They still could carry another bonus overage into next season thanks to the outstanding totals of their entry-level players, but that’s less of a concern for the time being.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Marian Hossa Cleared For Long-Term Injured Reserve

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The NHL has made its decision on whether or not Marian Hossa can be placed on long-term injured reserve, and it’s a good one for the Chicago Blackhawks. According to Scott Powers of The Athletic, the league has decided that the Blackhawks can indeed use the cap-saving measure on Hossa, after they confirmed his skin disorder with an independent physician.

"<strongHossa has dealt with the issue for years, but it has progressed to the point where he won’t be able to play this season. That raised several eyebrows around the league as the 38-year old has four years left on his contract at a $5.28MM cap hit, and the team is once again pushed right up to the cap ceiling. Despite the big cap hit, the contract will only actually pay Hossa $1MM per season, as the deal was signed before the previous collective bargaining agreement. Allowing him to be placed on LTIR will help the Blackhawks out salary-wise, but they would likely rather just have the future Hall of Fame forward in the lineup instead. Hossa’s presence is hard to replicate, and the Blackhawks will have to rely on some younger players to try and fill the gap left by his absence.

Though no one has said that this is basically a retirement for Hossa, it wouldn’t surprise many if it were. The legendary winger will turn 39 this season, and has done just about everything there is to do in his career. A three-time Stanley Cup Champion, six-time All-Star, and Memorial Cup Champion, Hossa has been a perennial Selke candidate as one of the league’s best defensive forwards while also recording 1,134 points in 1,309 regular season games. Add in another 149 points in 205 playoff contests, and participation in four different Olympic Games, and you have the resume of one of the greatest wingers in recent history.

Once Hossa is placed on LTIR, the Blackhawks should be able to add Cody Franson on an NHL contract of some sort. The free agent defenseman attended camp on a professional tryout, but has been expected to have a handshake deal in place since joining the team. Now that the club will get a little cap relief from moving Hossa to injured reserve, they’ll be able to announce whatever contract the two have agreed upon.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Snapshots: Brouwer, Kostin, LTIR

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With the addition of Jaromir Jagr to the Calgary Flames (which has still yet to actually be announced), there is something of a log jam for bottom-six wingers. Troy Brouwer, the most expensive one of the bunch, has now been rumored to be on his way out according to Rick Dhaliwal of News 1130 in Vancouver. While Dhaliwal makes it clear that nothing is imminent, a Brouwer trade would make sense for the Flames.

Last year, Calgary spent a second-round pick to acquire Curtis Lazar with the hope that he could develop into more than just a fourth-line player. Mark Jankowski, another first-round pick who the Flames have been waiting on impressed in camp and has earned a spot on the team. When added with Matt Stajan, Kris Versteeg and Freddie Hamilton the team clearly has enough bodies to handle a trade. Whether they swing a deal for Brouwer and his hefty salary ($4.5MM for each of the next three seasons) is still unclear, but Calgary is definitely a team to watch in the coming days.

  • Klim Kostin was on track to make the St. Louis Blues team out of camp but has suffered an injury according to Lou Korac of NHL.com. The young forward is set to miss 7-10 days and could start in the AHL to get his legs back under him before making an impact with the team. The Blues are without so many of their forwards to start the year that Kostin and other young players will likely have to play a role earlier than the team had wanted.
  • Speaking of the St. Louis Blues and young players, the team has announced an entry-level contract for Tanner Kaspick after spending some time with the club in camp this year. Kaspick is already back playing with his Brandon Wheat Kings of the WHL, where he has four points in four games. Kaspick was a fourth-round pick of the team in 2016 but has shown that there may be more upside to his game than originally thought. In 49 games with the Wheat Kings last year he registered 45 points, and should be given even more responsibility this season as the new captain.
  • Chris Johnston of Sportsnet asked Lou Lamoriello of the Toronto Maple Leafs if his team had been given any sort of decision from the league on the Joffrey Lupul situation, to which the GM said no. The league is set to decide whether Lupul and Chicago Blackhawks forward Marian Hossa can be placed on long-term injured reserve, a decision that should be made before long. If they are, both Toronto and Chicago could get more salary cap relief. The Blackhawks did place one player on LTIR today, moving defenseman Michal Rozsival there to free up another roster spot. Rozsival signed a contract last season in order to help the Blackhawks become expansion draft compliant, but did not pass his physical at the beginning of training camp.

Central Notes: Parise, Hossa, Wilson

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Although Wild forward Zach Parise took part in practice on Friday for the first time in training camp, his back troubles are something that he and the team will be monitoring throughout the course of the season, notes Dane Mizutani of the Pioneer Press.  Head coach Bruce Boudreau is hopeful to get Parise into a game before the exhibition schedule comes to a close.

The fact that Parise believes this situation is going to have to be watched throughout the season has to be somewhat concerning, not only for this year but possibly beyond if it continues to linger.  He is the highest paid forward on the Wild with a cap hit checking in at just over $7.5MM while he has eight years remaining on his contract.

More from the Central:

  • It turns out that Joffrey Lupul isn’t the only player that the league is reviewing the medical status for. James Mirtle of The Athletic reports that Blackhawks winger Marian Hossa is also being looked at.  The team announced back in June that Hossa would miss all of 2017-18 due to a progressive skin disorder.  Placing Hossa (and Lupul) on long-term injury reverse allows both Chicago and Toronto to get back into cap compliance but the league will be taking a closer look before effectively approving their placements.  Considering the potential impact on the salary cap, it would seem likely that this will be addressed before the regular season gets underway.
  • Colin Wilson’s time with the Predators came to an end this summer when he was dealt to Colorado. He noted to AJ Haefele of BSN Denver that it was a situation where “both parties decided to move on”.  Wilson is coming off of a 35 point season with Nashville but has largely been viewed as an underachiever the past few seasons whose cap hit of nearly $4MM was too high for what he brought to the lineup.  That should change this season as he will be counted on to play a big role with the Avalanche and will likely start inside their top six.

Evening Snapshots: Blackhawks, Patrick

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The pressure building on the Chicago Blackhawks is similar to that felt by the 2012-13 team writes CSN Chicago’s Tracey Myers. For fans seeking good omens, that could be one heading into a more uncertain season sans forward Marian Hossa, and a roster relying upon a bevy of youth. Myers writes that the Hawks torrid 21-0-3 start to the strike-shortened season, as well as a second round scare to Detroit ended well for Chicago as they dispatched the Boston Bruins in six games and captured its second Cup in four seasons. Few remember that the Hawks were at a crossroads–being beaten in the first round in consecutive seasons while experiencing some in-house turmoil that led many to wonder what would be. A Stanley Cup parade in 2013 put doubts to rest and the Hawks came within a puck bounce in 2014 of heading back to the Stanley Cup Final. They would win again in 2015, but are coming off of a shocking sweep last spring.

Myers writes, however, that things are a bit different than they were in 2013. The core of that team is almost five years older, have logged a lot of wear and tear, and don’t have the same supporting core they once did. Hossa’s loss hasn’t been measured yet, but the acquisition of Brandon Saad will bring a strong two-way forward back into the mix. Myers believes that a return to dominance is harder to envision, and that similar expectations to the 2013 resurgence are probably a little too optimistic.

  • The Philadelphia Flyers’ Nolan Patrick is going to be okay Philadelphia Inquirer writer Sam Carchidi assures a nervous fan base. Patrick had another surgery this summer for abdominal issues, which marked a second consecutive summer he spent rehabbing from an injury. The 19-year-old second overall pick did say he felt totally healthy three weeks ago–which should calm concerned Flyers fans. Patrick spoke about training with Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews, who Patrick called a “really intelligent guy” and one who helped him with nutrition and training advice. He also noted that he’s been playing at 100% while on the ice, and that his goal remains to make the Flyers roster out of training camp.

Snapshots: Draisaitl, Polak, Blackhawks

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Oilers center Leon Draisaitl is the most prominent of the 19 remaining restricted free agents.  While some have suggested that he and Bruins RFA winger David Pastrnak could be looking for similar contracts (and could be waiting for the other to sign before finalizing their agreements), David Staples of the Edmonton Journal suggests that Buffalo’s pursuit of an eight-year extension for center Jack Eichel is worth keeping an eye on, especially if he signs his deal before Draisaitl puts pen to paper on his.

Eichel hasn’t had as productive of a year like Draisaitl did in 2016-17 (77 points in 82 games) but he is younger and has the higher draft pedigree which will be factors in negotiations with Buffalo.  Staples asserts that it will be hard for Oilers GM Peter Chiarelli to argue that Draisaitl should be paid less than Eichel and given what the 2015 second overall pick has done in his two years with Buffalo plus his draft status, he should be heading for a second contract north of $7MM, if not more.

Staples projects that Draisaitl should be in line for a contract between $7.2MM and $8MM but that the young German’s agent, Mike Liut, may want to wait to see if Eichel signs first in the hopes of strengthening Draisaitl’s bargaining leverage.  While anything in or around that range is certainly a big ticket contract, the Oilers have more than enough cap space to fit him in this year as they currently have just shy of $17MM in cap space per CapFriendly.

More from around the hockey world:

  • Although he has yet to land a new contract this summer, unrestricted free agent defenseman Roman Polak isn’t dealing with any setbacks in his injury rehab, TSN’s Kristen Shilton reports (Twitter link). The 31-year-old underwent surgery on his leg in mid-April after being injured in the second game of Toronto’s first round series against Washington.  Polak is coming off a $2.25MM contract and between the injury and his status as a third pairing player, he will likely be taking a sizable pay cut on his next contract.  He is not eligible to sign a contract with performance bonuses as he’s under 35 and didn’t spend more than 100 days on injured reserve in 2016-17.
  • While Chicago is capable of placing winger Marian Hossa on summer long-term injury reserve now to free up cap space to make another offseason addition (like Toronto has already done), NHL.com’s Dan Rosen suspects that the Blackhawks will wait until the regular season to do so. While that will stop them from adding anyone else of note for a couple of months, waiting until the puck drops on 2017-18 will give them the most amount of in-season flexibility.  It was announced back in June that Hossa will miss all of 2017-18 at the very least due to a progressive skin disorder.

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