Hockey player Marian Hossa: sports career, achievements, personal life

Marian Hossa is the legendary Slovak hockey player, three-time winner of the Stanley Cup. Spent over 1000 matches in the regular NHL championship, in which he scored more than 500 goals.

Sports biography

Marian Hossa, whose photo can be seen in the article, was born in 1979 in the small Czechoslovak town of Staraya Lubovna. After the dissolution of Czechoslovakia, this territory has moved to Slovakia.

From an early age, Marian Hossa showed great abilities in hockey. Thanks to persistent training and skill, young talent began to be drawn to matches for different teams of his country, from junior to national.

As part of the main team, Hossa participated in four Winter Olympics. The most successful was the tournament in Vancouver, Canada - there the Slovaks stopped a step away from the medal, taking fourth place. In addition to the Winter Olympics, Marian is a participant in seven World Championships.

Career in the NHL

When the young hockey player turned 18, he decided to continue his career in the most prestigious world hockey league - the NHL. In 1997, according to the draft pick Marian Hossa was in the team "Ottawa Senators." But there was no place for the newcomer in the main team, so the young Slovak went to the Portland club "Winter Hawks", performing in the Western Hockey League. For "Hawks" Hoss played 53 games, which scored 85 points. According to the results of the regular season, Marian was recognized as the best rookie of the tournament.

At the end of next year, the hockey player returns to the Senators from Ottawa, for which he played until 2004.

In 2000, Marian Hossa became a participant in the tragic incident. During the game against the Toronto Maples Livs, he struck an accidental kick on the face of defender team-rival Brian Berard. The trauma was so serious that the victim almost lost his eyes and did not finish his sports career because of this. Hossa visited Bernard in the hospital and sincerely asked for forgiveness for his act. Fortunately, Berard quickly recovered and soon again went out on the ice.

The regular season 2000/01 became for Hossa triumphal: having scored 75 points (32 goals and 43 assists), he became the second most effective player of the "Senators", second only to Alexei Yashin. Thanks to this, he was invited to participate in the NHL All-Star Game, and also signed a new 8.5-million-dollar contract with his club.

Season 2002/03 showed how effective Marian Hossa could be. The hockey player set a personal record, scoring 45 goals and giving 35 assists, which allowed him again to get into the Match of all NHL stars.

At the end of the contract, Hossa briefly returned to Europe, where he managed to play in the Slovak and Swedish hockey leagues.

Star Return

Shortly before the start of the 2005/06 season, hockey fans of the most prestigious hockey league had a pleasant surprise - Marian Hossa returned to them. The NHL has always been a priority for him. Back in "Ottawa Senators," Hossa soon fell for the exchange to the Atlanta Thrashers club, where he managed to update his personal record of performance to 92 points.

But in the next season Marian improved his performance, having managed to score 100 points: scored 43 goals and gave 57 assists. This allowed him to again take part in the All-Star Game of the NHL.

In February 2008, Marian Hossa moved to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Despite the injury at the beginning of the season, his performance is impressive - 66 points, the Stanley Cup finals and getting all the NHL stars in the Match.

The management of the "Penguins" offered the Slovak hockey player a contract calculated for 5 years, according to which Hossa would earn 7 million a year, but he refused.

The summer of 2008 brought great changes for Hossa. He signed a one-year contract with the current owner of the Stanley Cup "Detroit Red Wings", where he received the 81st game number. October 18, Marian was able to distinguish himself for the first time in the new team.

In March 2009, Hossa suffered a serious neck injury after banging his head in the fence of the ice arena. From the site he was taken out on a stretcher. But even this incident did not prevent him from becoming the team's top scorer with 40 goals left. Also this season, his team reached the finals of the Stanley Cup, where they lost to the Penguins from Pittsburgh.

At the end of the contract in 2009, Hossa signed a contract with the "Chicago Black Hawks", counted for 12 years with an annual salary of 5.2 million dollars.

With the new team, the Slovak extreme striker won the Stanley Cup three times - in 2010, 2013 and 2015. In 2012, again received an invitation to the All-Star Game of the NHL. On March 3, 2013, the player celebrated his sports jubilee - he played in the thousandth game in the NHL.

Personal life

Marian Hossa does not refer to those athletes who display their personal lives for show. It is known that in 2010 his marriage with Yana Feeroi took place, which gave birth to two daughters - Mia and Zoya.

Father Mariana, Frantisek Hossa, was a famous hockey coach, who once headed the national team of Slovakia.

The younger brother Marcel went in the footsteps of Marian. At one time he played in the NHL and the KHL, and now stands for the Czech team "Skoda Pilsen".