Chicago Blackhawks: Will Marian Hossa Join the 500 Goal Club?

The Chicago Blackhawks Marian Hossa continued his scoring ways with two assists in the Blackhawks 3-2, overtime win against the San Jose Sharks on Sunday night. 

Last Thursday in Long Island, Hossa opened up the scoring against the New York Islanders with his 400th career goal.  

Hossa achieved a milestone that only 85 players in the history of the NHL have reached before him. Now a part of an exclusive club, how far can Hossa's scoring go?

If he continues to play well in the next few years, the chances of him reaching the 1000 point plateau is probable. As of right now, Hossa has 858 career points. Together with his 400 goals, he has collected 458 assists.

Hossa first entered the league in the 1998-99 season. Since then he has proved to be a terrific hockey player.  He plays both ends of the ice exceptionally well. When he is not scoring, he is doing the little things in his own zone and in neutral ice to support the play.  At 32, he is still a critical ingredient to a cup contending team.

Hossa's current contract with the Chicago Blackhawks is immense. He joined the Hawks in the summer of 2009 after a one year stint with the Detroit Red Wings. He signed a 12 year, $62.8 million contract that will see him being a paid hockey player through the 2020-21 season.

Hossa will make an average of $5.233 million over this span. Though the last two years on his contract he will make $750,000, financially he should be just fine.  

Nobody knows for sure if Hossa will play well into his 40's. It's quite possible. At the same time, Hossa is prone to being injured. He has yet to play a full season as a Blackhawk. Though he has avoided major injury, he has missed some time. Whether or not this is due to playing in three Stanley Cup Finals in three years with three different teams is up for debate. Until the summer of 2011, he had not had a full offseason to recover in some time.

This season, Hossa is one of the Hawks' top performers.  After five points in his last two games, he has 31 points in 29 games and is a plus-15.

One can argue that Hossa was a more dynamic player before hitting his thirties and that is certainly justified.  Before coming to Chicago, Hossa had a 100 point season with the Atlanta Thrashers and has averaged 72 points a season since his rookie campaign.

Since turning 30 and in two years in Chicago, Hossa has averaged a modest 54 points. Granted, the most he has played in those two respective seasons is 65 games.

If that pace continues and Hossa stays healthy for the next fives years, he should be able to eclipse the 1000 point barrier within two to four years. This is not only a possibility, but likely, as long as he avoids major injury.

In this day and age, if you truly are to cement your NHL legacy and have a plaque waiting for you in the Hall of Fame, 1000 points may not be enough. There are some, Blackhawk great Steve Larmer included, that have cracked 1000 points in their careers and are still waiting by the phone.

500 goals is considered a lock and it should be. There is the second assist in hockey, but goals stand alone. Goals are not only more glamorous, but often times will require more of an individual effort.

Hossa has always been considered offensively productive and while he has had three 40-plus goal seasons, he has never scored 50 goals in a single year. 50 is still considered the modern day benchmark for regular season tallies. If you have a few 50 goal tilts but are shy of 500 goals or 1000 points, you still have a shot at the Hall. Just ask Cam Neely.

When it comes to Hossa, 500 career goals is a very intriguing debate. As a Blackhawk, he does not even have 50 goals combined in his last two seasons. He scored 24 and 25, respectively. Currently, Hossa has 12 goals and could have his first 30 goal output in three seasons.

If Hossa does have a 25 goal pace for the next four years, beginning in the 2012-13 season, he'll have 500 in hand. It sounds so easy, but at the same time Hossa is not getting any younger.

Marian Hossa will turn 33 on January 12. He will be 36 or 37 by the time he will be approaching the 500 mark. Questions will linger whether on not he can continue to produce as he gets older.

Many will have an opinion, but if you want mine, Marian Hossa will tally 500 career NHL goals, reach 1000 points and enter the Hockey Hall of Fame as a Chicago Blackhawk.

Thanks for reading.