Leafs' Lupul, Blackhawks' Hossa placed on long-term IR

[October 04, 2017]  The Sports Xchange

Toronto Maple Leafs forward Joffrey Lupul and Chicago Blackhawks winger Marian Hossa both failed independent medical examinations and will be placed on long-term-injured-reserve by their respective teams.

Both failed physicals by team doctors, but questions about salary-cap circumvention arose when Lupul posted a photo on Instagram of himself snowboarding with the comments, "Haha failed physical? They cheat, everyone lets them," and "I'm ready. Just awaiting the call."

Lupul is under contract through the end of this season but hasn't played since the 2015-16 campaign because of numerous injuries. The 33-year-old has 205 goals, 215 assists and 407 penalty minutes in 701 career games with the Anaheim Ducks, Edmonton Oilers, Philadelphia Flyers and Maple Leafs.

Eyebrows were raised about Hossa because his 12-year contract, which was heavily front-loaded before the NHL put a stop to the practice in the last CBA, dips to $1 million per season over the next four years. Hossa said he would not play this season and potentially beyond because of a skin condition.

 

Hossa, 38, has scored 525 goals and 609 assists in 1,309 career NHL games with the Blackhawks, Ottawa Senators, Atlanta Thrashers, Pittsburgh Penguins and Detroit Red Wings. He ranks 34th on the NHL all-time goal-scoring list, 80th on the assists list and 54th on the points list, and 60th in games played.

Hossa won the Stanley Cup three times with the Blackhawks in 2010, 2013 and 2015, and has 149 points (52 goals, 97 assists) in 205 career Stanley Cup playoff games.

By allowing both teams to put the players on LTIR, the Blackhawks erase Hossa's $5.275 million cap hit and the Maple Leafs hide Lupul's $5.3 million hit.

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