Losing Hossa for season 'heartbreaking' to Blackhawks

Not having forward Marian Hossa this season is affecting the Chicago Blackhawks as much off the ice as it will on it.
"It's heartbreaking what he has to go through when you know it's too soon (to not play again)," captain Jonathan Toews told the Chicago Tribune at the 10th annual Blackhawks Convention on Friday. "He's got a ton left on the table. I could almost see him being one of those [Jaromir] Jagrs that is playing for another six or seven years. It's tough to see."

The Blackhawks announced June 21 that Hossa would miss this season with a progressive skin disorder and side effects from medications used to treat it. It is unknown if he will return to the NHL after that.
"It's not like this happened overnight," Toews told the Chicago Sun-Times. "A lot of the guys that were aware of his situation all kind of knew that that decision would have to be made."
Hossa, 38, had 45 points (26 goals, 19 assists) in 73 games last season, including his 500th NHL goal. The forward played eight seasons with the Blackhawks and helped them win the Stanley Cup three times (2010, 2013, 2015).

"He became a good friend over the years," Patrick Sharp told the Sun-Times. "We both had weddings and kids, he has two daughters, and I do. … He's going to be missed definitely on the ice in Chicago, but more importantly for guys like me, he's going to be missed in the locker room as well."
Hossa has four years remaining on a 12-year contract he signed with Chicago on July 1, 2009 as an unrestricted free agent.
"As far as making predictions, I don't think it's the time to be doing that," general manager Stan Bowman told the Tribune when asked about Hossa possibly returning.
Hossa has an NHL salary-cap charge of $5.275 million per year, according to CapFriendly.com. The Blackhawks reportedly can gain maximum relief by waiting until the season starts to put him on long-term injured reserve.
"What personnel moves we'll make [will] probably be dictated by where we're at when we get to October, how the team is playing, what areas are strong, what areas we want to try to add to," Bowman told the Sun-Times. "I wouldn't say we have an exact plan that we're just going to execute Day One. We're going to see what happens between now and then."