Marian Hossa: a farewell match worthy of his career

In the 2016-2017 season, legend Marian Hossa played his last NHL game. That year, with the team he enjoyed his greatest success, he collected 45 points in 73 games.

He was then traded to the Arizona Coyotes, where he played a grand total of… 0 games.

Hossa’s contract is one of many that have been buried deep in the desert. Pavel Datsyuk, Chris Pronger and most recently Shea Weber all passed through Arizona before expiring.

But for Hossa, despite having retired from field hockey in North America a few years ago, the field hockey world was saying a final goodbye to him tonight. In the company of many fine players, the Slovakian played his last “official” game.

Here’s the line-up:

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To say he’s playing with some good players is almost an understatement. Of the lot, there are guys like Nicklas Lidstrom, Jonathan Toews, Dustin Byfuglien, Patrick Sharp and Daniel Alfredsson.

Several still-active players also took to the ice. Tomas Tatar, Duncan Keith and Teuvo Teravainen were among them. All the players present were former teammates of Marian Hossa.

Among the 33 players present, a total of 41 Stanley Cup rings were won. Not bad for a farewell game, eh?

A certain Marian Gaborik was also present, but the former Wild, Rangers, Blue Jackets, Kings and Senators player preferred to be behind the bench. In fact, the Slovak, a native of Trencin (where the duel took place), had a chat with a certain Dustin Byfuglien.

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Champion of three Stanley Cups with the Chicago Blackhawks, Hossa finished his professional career with 1134 points in 1309 games. He was an important part of the Hawks’ powerful dynasty.

His farewell game in his homeland: he richly deserves it. Happy retirement, Marian! He finished on a high note with a goal against Jaroslav Halak.

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– Here’s to your questions.

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– Mitch Giguere (@Mitch_Giguere) August 18, 2023

– C’est la vie.

– A whole round for him.

– Hurricane disrupts MLB schedule.

– Too bad.