Versteeg wants to 'give back,' inks 1-year deal with Rockford IceHogs
Kris Versteeg will be forever grateful to the Chicago Blackhawks.
Grateful for the chance to begin his NHL career with them Nov. 22, 2007. Grateful for the Stanley Cup teams he was a part of in 2010 and 2015. And grateful for the friends he made along the way.
Because of all that, Versteeg wanted to give back to Stan Bowman, John McDonough and the rest of the organization.
So the 32-year-old forward, who went through an incredibly trying time last season while playing in two different overseas leagues, reached out to Rockford IceHogs GM Mark Bernard and offered to play for the Hawks' minor-league team if an opportunity arose.
Hawks brass loved the idea and Versteeg inked a one-year deal Monday.
"I had a lot of interest to go back and play overseas," said Versteeg, whose wife is expecting their third child in August. "But for me, I'd like to come back home with a newborn (on the way), and also give back to an organization that's given me everything."
Versteeg scored 68 goals in 294 games during his stints with the Hawks from 2007-10 and 2013-15. He played in 24 games with Calgary in 2017-18, then went to Russia's KHL to begin last season.
A season that went wrong from the get-go.
"I got pretty sick my first few weeks," Versteeg said. "Then I got shingles and played with it for about a week."
In Versteeg's case, the shingles rash appeared on his back and caused considerable pain and discomfort. At first, he wasn't sure what it was and decided to send a picture to his doctor in Toronto with the message: "Man, something is seriously wrong here.
"And within a second he texts back: 'You have shingles. You've got to get looked at right away.' … I played in St. Petersburg that night and I couldn't even get out of bed. I was just in horrible pain. It was like someone was burning me with a hot pen constantly for four hours. It was terrible."
Versteeg took some time off, came back for a few games and then returned to his family in Ontario. After sitting out four months, Versteeg accepted an offer from Vaxjo HC in the Swedish League.
That's when Versteeg found out he could still perform at a high level, scoring 4 goals with 7 assists in 12 games.
"I kind of shocked myself with how I felt and how I did," Versteeg said. "That's why I'm kind of where I am today. I still want to come back home and I want to play."
This path Versteeg is on may come as a shock to some, but it's not unique. A 47-year-old Chris Chelios closed his career by playing 46 games for the Chicago Wolves and seven for the Atlanta Thrashers in 2009-10. Troy Murray played 81 games for the Wolves in 1996-97, one season after winning a Stanley Cup with Colorado.
This could be how Versteeg finishes his career as well - and that's fine with him.
"My main goal is to help the Hawks and help their young guys," Versteeg said. "I also think I have a lot of game left where I hope young guys can still watch me and learn, and I can still learn from them.
"Whether anything in the NHL comes from that, I don't know. If it ever happens, it happens. But it's not totally on my mind."