Cullimore proves he's a survivor
LOS ANGELES, Ca. -- This being Thanksgiving weekend, Blackhawks defenseman Jassen Cullimore could only smile when asked if he ever gives thanks to Patrick Kane for getting sick and missing that game against Columbus back in October.
“No I don't ... but I probably should,” he said.
Yeah, probably.
For it was Kane's sudden illness that prompted Hawks brass to call Rockford in search of replacement who turned out to be Cullimore.
“It was kind of a shock to me because I was like what's going on? Did someone get hurt? Suspended?” Cullimore said. “They were like, ‘Patrick Kane is sick.'”
“I was thinking I'd have to play the offensive role, you know, play forward, score goals … that didn't end up happening.”
What did end up happening is that Cullimore has played well enough to stick around, something he figured would happen anyway once he was given the chance.
“I had a good camp and I talked to the staff when they initially sent me to Rockford and they said more than likely there would probably be an opportunity for me to get a chance to play with Chicago,” he said. “I was under the mindset that it was just a matter of time to get a chance.”
Cullimore has been a steady force on defense, where he is averaging just over 14 minutes of ice time per game. Despite letting Patrick Marleau elude him on a goal in Wednesday's loss in San Jose, Cullimore has a solid plus-5 rating.
Not bad for a guy who, until recently, was still feeling the lingering results of three separate surgeries.
“The last time I was here, after the first year, I had three surgeries (left knee, left hip, left wrist). I didn't realize how much it affected me,” said Cullimore, who originally signed with the Hawks as a free agent prior to the 2005-06 season. “Last year and the year before it was like ‘it's not going away.' I had these aches and pains.
“I feel like I have all the injuries that I've had in the past few years under control. My skating is as good as it's been since before the lockout. I felt good, confident in my game, and was just waiting for the opportunity.”
Until that call, Cullimore's home was with the AHL's Rockford IceHogs, where he played 59 games last season.
“I looked at it as if I could help out in whatever way I could,” he said of his time in Rockford. “There are obviously a lot of younger guys and I was either older or the same age as some of the coaches. I took that role when I was there kind of help out guys on and off the ice.”
But still there was a level of frustration over not being with the Hawks during their run to the Stanley Cup.
‘You know, there was, especially when I would watch games and later on in the year during the playoffs when I was practicing with the team,” he said. “When you go a year without playing in the NHL you start questioning, you know, am I good enough? But when you realize that you still are good enough, it kind of gets to you.
“But everything worked out. I wouldn't change anything.”
Cullimore, 37, feels like a completely new man, like he's caught a second wind and can even see playing a few more years.
“Definitely,” he said. “And part of that is because I have the nagging injuries under control and feel good on my feet.
“To have it go away is amazing.”