Oct. 31--KANATA, Ontario -- When he first arrived in Ottawa, Marian Hossa was a teenager living in a strange city.
"I stayed here pretty much by myself," said Hossa, who the Senators picked 12th overall in the 1997 NHL draft and who subsequently spent the summer away from his home in Slovakia. "I was just wandering around the city. It was an interesting beginning and 17 years later, I am here."
"Here" for Hossa entailed the winger playing in his 1,100th career game as the Blackhawks faced the Senators on Thursday night at Canadian Tire Centre. "Here" also meant being one of the NHL's elite players who reached the 1,000 point mark with a goal and an assist during the Hawks' 5-4 victory over the Senators in a shootout.
"It's a great achievement and a great milestone and I'm really thankful to all the players who helped me achieve this during my career," Hossa said. "It doesn't get better than this. It happened in Ottawa where everything started. I'll always remember that."
The 35-year-old Hossa became the 80th player in NHL history to reach 1,000 points and it's a milestone that he doesn't take lightly.
"You have to be lucky health-wise," he said. "You have to be lucky to be on good teams to play so many games. I was lucky to play with great teammates wherever I was.
"I try to stay the way I did when I came here," Hossa added. "I'm just having lots of fun (like) when I was a younger guy and when I'm an older guy. There are lots of young kids rolling around. There are a bunch of 19- and 20-year-old guys. It's fun to be around that environment and I'm just glad I can still play."
Maybe most important, "here" is also where Hossa stands in the minds of those teammates.
"He's one of those players when I was a kid that you looked up to and idolized and would really be wowed by his presence on the ice," winger Kris Versteeg said. "When I got here, you really realized he's a pro's pro and what kind of player he is off the ice. He's a special guy. He takes time to consider other people. He could be the ultimate All-Star and never talk to anyone, but he talks to everyone and really gets to know everybody. He's honestly the best team guy and All-Star I've ever played with."
Added defenseman Duncan Keith: "As players and ... teammates, we're just privileged to be on a team with that guy. He doesn't slow down one bit. We're happy he's on our team for sure."
Signed through the 2020-21 season, it's pretty clear Hossa won't play out the contract, but, "I hope I can play for ... a few years more."
So, Hossa isn't done piling up points while also being one of the top defensive forwards in the league. When he does hang up the skates, the Hockey Hall of Fame will likely come calling.
"To tell you the truth, I don't think about those things," Hossa said. "If one day that (happened it) would be a privilege."
Net news: Against the Senators, Lemont native Scott Darling got the call in goal over No. 1 netminder Corey Crawford, who said he is "100 percent" recovered from an upper-body injury, and backup Antti Raanta.
Crawford, who split time taking shots with Raanta during the skate, said he is ready to go after missing five games.
"I'm going to wait for the coach's call," Crawford said. "I feel good with timing. I'm reading shots pretty well. Sliding across, pushing for stuff. Everything feels back to normal."
Coach Joel Quenneville said that would be Saturday night against the Maple Leafs in Toronto. Crawford served as backup to Darling on Thursday, leaving Raanta the odd-man out. The team is expected to make a roster move Friday.
"We don't envision having three goalies around here longer than needed," Quenneville said.
The fact Raanta has watched from the bench the last three games is a pretty good indicator he could be headed to Rockford, but Quenneville said of Thursday's scratch, "I don't think that has anything to with the decision we're going to make after (Thursday's) game."
ckuc@tribune.com
Twitter @ChrisKuc
