Blackhawks legend Marian Hossa has jersey retirement date set
CHICAGO – Marian Hossa is the first player in Chicago Blackhawks history to wear No. 81, and he’ll be the last.
The Blackhawks announced in April that Hossa’s number will be retired at some point during the upcoming 2022-23 season. The team on Wednesday finalized a date for the ceremony: Sunday, Nov. 20 vs. the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Hossa forever. November 20. pic.twitter.com/wnnaVhHgTn
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) September 14, 2022
It’s a fitting opponent to celebrate Hossa as he had a brief stint with the Eastern Conference champion Penguins in 2007-08 which means former teammates such as Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin will be in attendance for the special night. To make the evening even more special, it’s possible that Malkin could be playing in his 1,000th career NHL game when the Blackhawks host the Penguins.
Hossa is set to become just the eighth player in franchise history to have his number retired, joining the likes of Glenn Hall (No. 1), Keith Magnuson (No. 3), Pierre Pilote (No. 3), Bobby Hull (No. 9), Denis Savard (No. 18), Stan Mikita (No. 21) and Tony Esposito (No. 35).
The 12th overall pick in the 1997 NHL Draft by the Ottawa Senators spent eight of his 19 NHL seasons in Chicago where he racked up 415 points (186 goals, 229 assists) in 534 regular season games and totaled 73 points (21 goals, 52 assists) over 107 playoff matchups. Hossa helped the Blackhawks win three Stanley Cups (2010, 2013, 2015) and signed a ceremonial one-day contract on April 7, 2022 to officially retire as a Blackhawk.
He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in November 2021 and is just the third Slovak-born player to do so (Stan Mikita, Peter Stastny).
