The Rockford IceHogs have lost their captain. The team announced today that they have mutually terminated the AHL contract of veteran forward Kris Versteeg at his request. IceHogs GM Mark Bernard explained:
Earlier this week, Kris approached us about mutually terminating his contract, at which point we asked him to take another couple of days to think about it. We spoke again Saturday morning and he had come to his final decision. Since 2007, when Kris first became a member of the Blackhawks organization, he has represented us with class and professionalism. He will always be a member of our organization’s family and we wish him and his family all the best going forward.
Versteeg, 33, also released a statement that made it sound like he is contemplating retirement as he thanked the Chicago Blackhawks organization for “not only [giving] me my first chance, but my second and final chance.”
Signing a one-year AHL contract with the team to continue his playing career, Versteeg was named captain and played in six games with Rockford this season. He was held to one point during that time.
A veteran of 643 NHL games, Versteeg won the Stanley Cup twice with the Blackhawks, first in 2010 and again in 2015.
Great career, something to be proud of. Hawks fans thank you for the help with 2 Cups! Enjoy retirement and your next adventures!
Enjoy your retirement, Steegs! Thanks for your contributions to the Hawks and their Stanley Cup runs!
Can’t believe he’s only 33. Seems like he’s older.
Enjoyed watching the Hawks win cups. It’ll be sad if he calls it quits at an early age. Nothing confirmed yet.