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Blackhawks News: A very special announcement was made on Thursday

By Vincent Parise

4 Feb 1996: Defenseman Chris Chelios of the Chicago Blackhawks stands on the ice during a game against the Anaheim Mighty Ducks at Arrohead Pond in Anaheim, California. The Blackhawks won the game 4-1. Mandatory Credit: Glenn Cratty /Allsport
4 Feb 1996: Defenseman Chris Chelios of the Chicago Blackhawks stands on the ice during a game against the Anaheim Mighty Ducks at Arrohead Pond in Anaheim, California. The Blackhawks won the game 4-1. Mandatory Credit: Glenn Cratty /Allsport /
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The Chicago Blackhawks are getting ready to turn the page from their most recent core. The days of Jonathan Toews, Patrick Sharp, Marian Hossa, Duncan Keith, Patrick Kane, Brent Seabrook, Niklas Hjalmarsson, and Corey Crawford are gone.

It is Connor Bedard season in Chicago and fans are getting very excited. However, that doesn’t mean it is time for them to just forget the past.

The Hawks made an announcement that is going to surprise some people. They are going to honor one of their all-time greatest players.

This one comes before the dynasty that you knew about in the 2010s. Of course, we are talking about Chris Chelios.

The Chicago Blackhawks were lucky to have Chris Chelios around for a while.

The cool thing about Chelios is that he ended up playing a lot of years for the Blackhawks where he was a top-flight NHL defenseman. He is also a Chicago native which makes it even cooler.

Chelios was drafted in the second round (40th overall) by the Montreal Canadiens in the 1981 NHL Draft. He went on to play seven seasons with them before spending nine with the Hawks.

He then spent the next ten years with the Detroit Red Wings which didn’t go over well with those in Chicago who loved him. Chelios then finished his career with one final season (he only played in seven games) on the Atlanta Thrashers.

Now, the aforementioned cool announcement is that his number seven is going to be retired by the Blackhawks. His number seven will hang in the United Center forever.

Fittingly, Chelios’ ceremony is going to take place against the Detroit Red Wings on February 25th. This is going to be a very good night for both franchises.

Chelios found out about this news from his good friend Eddie Vedder. Pearl Jam was playing a show at the UC and delivered the news. That had to be an amazing moment for him and his family.

This is a well-deserved honor for Chelios. He is a three-time Stanley Cup champion, three-time Norris Trophy winner, seven-time All-Star, a Hockey Hall of Famer, and was named to be one of the NHL’s 100 greatest players during the centennial season.

In his career, Chelios scored 185 goals and had 763 assists for 948 points. All of that came in 1651 games. Clearly, he was an outstanding player.

Hockey season is so close and it will be fun to see a big ceremony like this take place at the United Center. We are so close.

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