Marian Hossa

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Lore & Background

As a youth, Hossa played in the 1993 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a team from Bratislava. After being drafted by Ottawa, he was assigned to the Portland Winterhawks of the WHL for the 1997–98 season, where he tallied 45 goals and 40 assists for 85 points in 53 games. He earned the Jim Piggott Memorial Trophy as WHL rookie of the year, as well as CHL and WHL West First Team All-Star honors. Hossa played the entire 1997–98 WHL regular season and playoffs for Portland, helping the team reach the Memorial Cup. In the first period of a tied championship game against the Guelph Storm, Hossa was injured by Guelph forward Ryan Davis, who was assessed a major penalty for kneeing, forcing him out of the game. The Winterhawks won in overtime, and Hossa returned to the ice on a chair as his teammates pushed him around with the Memorial Cup to celebrate. With seven points in four tournament games, Hossa was named to the Memorial Cup All-Star team.

In Their Own Story

The injury from the Memorial Cup kept Hossa from joining the Senators for his rookie season in 1998–99 until December. Despite missing two months, he managed 15 goals and 15 assists for 30 points in 60 games to earn NHL All-Rookie honours and finish second to the Colorado Avalanche's Chris Drury in Calder Memorial Trophy voting for rookie of the year. The following season, on 11 March 2000, Hossa high-sticked Toronto Maple Leafs defenceman Bryan Berard on the follow-through of an attempted shot. The resulting one-inch laceration nearly forced doctors to remove the eye and nearly ended Berard's playing career. Deeply regretful, Hossa visited Berard in the hospital the next day to offer an apology, to which Berard absolved him of any responsibility. Hossa recorded 32 goals and 75 points in 2000–01, finishing second in team scoring behind Alexei Yashin and earning his first NHL All-Star Game appearance in Denver.

Reader's Guide

Hossa's time with the Senators saw him develop into a consistent scorer. After a contract holdout to start the 2001–02 season, he signed a three-year, $8.5 million contract on 26 September 2001. He rebounded in 2002–03 with a career-high 45 goals, 35 assists and a team-leading 80 points, while competing in the 2003 NHL All-Star Game in Sunrise, Florida. He then led the Senators to a long playoff run where they were eliminated in seven games by the eventual Stanley Cup-champion New Jersey Devils in the Eastern Conference Finals. Hossa led the Senators with 16 points in 18 post-season games. The following season, he led the Senators in scoring for the second consecutive season with a personal best 82 points, then added four points in seven games in the playoffs as the Senators were eliminated by the Maple Leafs in the first round. Due to the 2004–05 NHL lockout, Hossa spent the season playing in Europe, beginning in Slovakia with Dukla Trenčín before joining Mora IK of the Swedish Elitserien to play with his younger brother Marcel.

Did You Know?

• Hossa was drafted 12th overall by the Ottawa Senators in the 1997 NHL entry draft from Dukla Trenčín of the Slovak Extraliga.
• He was selected fifth overall in the 1997 CHL Import Draft by the Portland Winterhawks of the WHL.
• Hossa played the entire 1997–98 WHL regular season and playoffs for Portland, helping the team win the 1998 Memorial Cup championship. After being injured in the first period of the final, he returned to the ice on a cha
• He finished third in Calder Memorial Trophy voting for rookie of the year in 1998–99, behind Chris Drury (winner) and Milan Hejduk (second).
• Hossa was the 44th player in NHL history to score 500 goals, and the 80th player to score 1,000 points.

Early Career and Ottawa Tenure

Marián Hossa began his professional journey after being selected 12th overall by the Ottawa Senators in the 1997 NHL Entry Draft. Initially assigned to major junior with the Portland Winterhawks, he immediately excelled, winning the Jim Piggott Memorial Trophy as rookie of the year and helping secure a President's Cup title. His path was briefly interrupted during the 1998 Memorial Cup when an injury from a kneeing incident forced him off the ice in the championship game; however, his team celebrated with him on a chair after winning in overtime. Upon joining Ottawa for good, Hossa overcame a late start to earn All-Rookie honors and finished second in Calder Trophy voting. His time in Ottawa was marked by significant growth, including a career-high 80-point season that led the franchise. Despite reaching the Eastern Conference Finals twice, he faced personal turmoil following a high-sticking incident involving Bryan Berard, an event Hossa deeply regretted but resolved through direct apology and forgiveness.

Atlanta Thrashers Breakthrough

Following a trade that sent him to the Atlanta Thrashers along with defenseman Greg de Vries for all star forward Dany Heatley, Hossa joined star winger Ilya Kovalchuk and scored 39 goals and 53 assists for 92 points, surpassing his previous personal best by ten points, in his first season with the Thrashers. In the 2006–07 season, Hossa made franchise history as the first Thrasher to score 100 points in one season, finishing with 43 goals and 57 assists; along with a plus/minus rating of +18. He was named to his third All-Star Game in Dallas, where he notched four assists. In the final game of the regular season, Hossa recorded two assists against the Tampa Bay Lightning to achieve the 100-point mark, which still stands as the franchise's single-season points record. The season also marked the first division title and post-season appearance for the Thrashers, clinching the Southeast Division title for the third playoff seed.

Stanley Cup Triumphs and Legacy

Hossa's career reached its zenith after leaving Atlanta, as he joined forces with the Pittsburgh Penguins and Detroit Red Wings before finding ultimate success with the Chicago Blackhawks. He became one of only a few players to reach three consecutive Stanley Cup Finals with different teams, finally capturing the championship in 2010. Over a remarkable 19-year span, he accumulated 525 goals and 609 assists for 1,134 points across 1,309 games. His consistency placed him among the elite, becoming the 44th player to score 500 goals and the 80th to reach 1,000 career points. In recognition of his profound impact on the game, Hossa was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2020.

Premature Retirement and Medical Challenges

Despite his enduring success, Hossa's illustrious playing career concluded prematurely due to health complications rather than age or performance decline. In 2017, he revealed that he was suffering from a progressive skin disorder, which necessitated an end to his active play. Although his contract was subsequently traded to the Arizona Coyotes in 2018, he never suited up for the team again. Hossa formally announced his retirement in 2022, bringing closure to a journey that had seen him compete at the highest level since the late 1990s. His departure from the ice was marked by a somber tone given the medical nature of his exit, yet it underscored his dedication to health over prolonging a career under difficult physical circumstances. This chapter of his life highlights the fragility of professional athletics and the courage required to step away when the body can no longer sustain the rigors of the sport.

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