Blackhawks have opportunity to re-acquire forward dumped in Marian Hossa trade
Photo credit: NHL
A former member of the Chicago Blackhawks surprisingly lands on NHL waivers on Tuesday, January 4th, per Sportsnet NHL insider Elliotte Friedman.
This is 30 year old Vinnie Hinostroza, who was shipped away by the Blackhawks in 2018, alongside Marian Hossa's contract and a couple draft picks
The versatile 30-year-old forward is the odd man out as Nashville looks to open a roster spot, potentially to activate defenseman Jeremy Lauzon off injured reserve. He'd been playing top-six spot duty for the Preds since they recalled him in late December, even recently skating on a line with Filip Forsberg and Ryan O'Reilly.
Despite being paired with two solid skaters, Vinnie Hinostroza hasn't been able to find his groove as he once had with the Chicago Blackhawks.
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Just a few years after trading him, in 2021, the Blackhawks re-acquired Hinostroza from the Florida Panthers in exchange for AHL forward Brad Morrison.
He has two assists in 13 games since his recall, averaging 11:32 per game and serving as a healthy scratch in three of Nashville's last five contests.
Before being recalled by the Predators, the aging veteran of 387 NHL games was one of the AHL's leading scorers either 33 points in 26 games played.
Having been in the NHL for 11 games, he still leads all AHL players in points per games played.
He didn't participate in yesterday's AHL All-Star Classic because of his summons to the big club. The Chicago native inked a two-year, two-way deal with the Preds in free agency last summer and already cleared waivers once at the beginning of the season. He's no longer the 30-point threat he was with the Blackhawks and Coyotes early in his career, and he hasn't played more than 30 NHL games in a season since 2021-22, but his AHL numbers over the past couple of seasons indicate he's still a capable depth scorer and a safe veteran recall option.
It's safe to say his time in Nashville is over, and others are looking to give the veteran a fresh start.
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