My Journey from Trencin to the Hall of Fame

Hockey legend Marian Hossa recently published a memoir, “My Journey from Trencin to the Hall of Fame”. This autobiography comes in conjunction with his No. 81 being retired by the Chicago Blackhawks in the United Center rafters this Sunday, Nov. 20, 2022.  It’s a highly entertaining and informative read, following Hossa’s life and career from his childhood in Slovakia, throughout his 19-year NHL career, to the present day with his upcoming honor in Chicago.

Related – Blackhawks’ Legend Marian Hossa & His Hall of Fame Career

Hossa addresses his audience in first person in the book, just like he’s sitting there having a conversation with you. The full-size, smiling photo of him on the cover is helpful in that regard. Hossa also commissioned Scott Powers, best known for his journalistic work with The Athletic, as his co-author. Powers obtained interviews with Hossa’s friends, family, teammates, coaches, you name it. It’s an excellent way to supplement Hossa’s own words to round out all the intricate details about the life of this amazing man.

In this book review, I’ll attempt to give you what I see as the highlights of Hossa’s journey through his life and hockey. But beware; this will likely just whet your appetite for more. The manuscript covers a lot of ground, but there was no part of the nineteen detailed chapters that I wanted to skim through or skip ahead. In this writer’s humble opinion, it’s a must-read for any hockey fan, especially Blackhawks fans.

The Perfect Hockey Player

Hossa asked Joel Quenneville, the coach he won three Stanley Cups with, to write the Foreword for the book. In typical Quenneville fashion, the former bench boss got straight to the point with this first  sentence:

When I think of Marian Hossa, I think of the perfect hockey player – no maintenance, smart, comes to play every night, plays the right way, plays in all situations.

Q goes on to discuss how Hossa always did the right things in the right areas, and as a coach he was spoiled to have him on his team. He said Hossa just quietly did his job, and was the most respected guy because he was such a “nice, classy player, a classy guy”.

He spoke a little bit about how it was a no-brainer to put Jonathan Toews and Hossa together. “I think certain individuals play the game to score points or get goals. Those two guys…