It was a quiet Saturday in August, but there was still plenty of hockey chatter to sift through, and a couple of names with serious Blackhawks ties made the day worth watching.
Marian Hossa was back on the ice, skating with HK Dukla Trenčín, the professional team in his native Slovakia. Hossa is getting ready to play in Zdeno Chara’s farewell game on Aug. 21, and he’ll have another Hall of Famer alongside him for the occasion: Duncan Keith is set to take part in the special night as well.
Elsewhere in the Blackhawks orbit, Brooke LoFurno examined what Ian Cole’s veteran presence could mean for the team’s blue line this season. Gail Kauchak also took a look at every player on the Blackhawks’ roster for the upcoming season and used one word to describe each of them.
The birthday list for Aug. 8 included Bill Gadsby, Tony Salemlainen, and Cody Franson.
Around the league, former Blackhawks forward Taylor Hall finally got his boating license and marked the occasion by taking the Stanley Cup out on the water. Hall posted, “Boaters license secured✔️ pic.twitter.com/Jd80aVRAL1” along with the celebration.
The biggest honor of the day belonged to Anze Kopitar. The Los Angeles Kings announced they will retire his No. 11 on Feb. 24, 2007, ahead of their game against the Montreal Canadiens.
Kopitar will become the eighth player in franchise history to have his number retired, joining Rob Blake (4), Marcel Dionne (16), Dave Taylor (18), Luc Robitaille (20), Dustin Brown (23), Rogie Vachon (30), and Wayne Gretzky (99). The Kings will also unveil a bronze statue of Kopitar outside Crypto.com Arena.
Former Rockford IceHogs forward Jackson Cates is also headed overseas. He signed a one-year deal with the Nürnberg Ice Tigers of Germany’s DEL after putting up 24 goals and 49 points in 143 games for Rockford over the past three seasons.
The NHL birthday roll call for Aug. 8 featured Ken Dryden, Greg Polis, Gary Rissling, Dominik Simon, Roby Jarventie, and Ridly Greig.
In Other News...
Blackhawks Rebuild Could Force A Painful Decision On Their Young Core
The idea of an expansion draft is still hypothetical, but it offers a useful snapshot of where the Blackhawks are headed. The Athletic recently built a mock exercise for a 33rd NHL franchise and used a projected 2026-27 Chicago roster to map out how the club might handle its protection list, blending young pillars with a few established veterans. For a team in the middle of a rebuild, the exercise underscores how quickly a promising core can become expensive to keep together.
It also highlights the kind of roster squeeze that can follow once the talent starts to arrive all at once. Chicago has spent years stockpiling high-end youth, and the mock draft forces the question of which players can be safeguarded and which ones might be left vulnerable when the time comes. The article revisits how past expansion drafts have affected the Blackhawks, but the larger takeaway is simple: if the rebuild keeps on track, hard choices may not be far behind. [Read more 🡒]
Blackhawks Playoff Debate Comes Down To One Harsh Reality
Connor Bedard gives the Blackhawks something every rebuilding team wants: a true centerpiece who can tilt a game and speed up the entire timeline. Around him, Chicago has young talent that gives the organization a reason to believe the climb is real, and it has enough promise to keep the playoff conversation alive heading into the season.
The harsh part is how crowded the path still looks. The Blackhawks are trying to rise in a division and conference that do not leave much room for a young team learning on the job, and the relative inexperience on the roster makes every step forward harder to bank. Unless Chicago takes a major leap, a realistic playoff return still looks more like a two- to three-season question than a one-year fix. [Read more 🡒]