Hossa ready to play, may explore European options

Last week, Marian Hossa was cleared from a season-ending concussion suffered during last year’s playoffs.

This week, he’s thinking about his playing future.

That’s what the Blackhawks forward told CSN Chicago on Monday, confirming he’s been medically cleared to resume playing hockey — possibly overseas, if that’s what it comes to.

“It definitely feels good to be cleared,” Hossa explained. “Basically after all the testing I’ve done I feel really comfortable with myself. Right now, I’m skating with the guys, I’m feeling good, and when the season starts, I’ll be ready.”

Just one catch: Hossa, like everybody else, has no idea when the season will start.

The 33-year-old suggested he’d eventually explore his European options — which isn’t all that surprising. Hossa was a busy guy during the last lockout, playing for two different European clubs: Trencin Dukla, the Slovakian team of his youth, and Mora IK of the Swedish Elite League, where he skated alongside Shawn Horcoff, Dan Cleary and Andreas Lilja.

“In the next few weeks we have to get a result [on if there is/isn’t an NHL season] — hopefully it’s a positive one,” Hossa said. “If not, I’ll do the next step and maybe look for other options.”