No head-scratcher, Marian Hossa returns

Chicago Blackhawks right winger Marian Hossa waits for a faceoff during the 3-1 loss to the Nashville Predators Tuesday January 24, 2012 at the United Center. | Tom Cruze~Sun-Times

Updated: April 10, 2013 6:16AM

DENVER — Perhaps for the rest of Marian Hossa’s career, every time he misses a game and the cause is not immediately obvious, speculation will run rampant that his absence is concussion-related. That’s what happened in the wake of his last-minute scratch Wednesday night at the United Center.

“That’s what they’re saying?” Hossa said with a surprised smirk. “I never thought about it. That’s news to me.”

Hossa declined to specify why he missed the game but said it was neither concussion-related nor an illness. He returned to the ice for Friday’s morning skate and started for the Blackhawks in Friday’s rematch with the Avalanche.

“I tried to see how it [felt] in the warmups [Wednesday], and I didn’t feel 100 percent,” Hossa said. “I think the smart decision was to take extra days off and play the next game. . . . It wasn’t sickness. It was nothing bad. Just felt like it would be better not to play that night.”

Shaw returns

Third-line center Andrew Shaw also returned to the lineup after he sat out the third period Wednesday following an elbow to the jaw from Colorado’s Paul Stastny. Shaw said it was just a precautionary measure and that he feels “perfectly fine.”

The league decided against fining or suspending Stastny for the hit, and Shaw didn’t protest.

“It’s the league’s decision,” he said. “They’ve been doing a pretty good job with it. They have their protocol, and they look at video pretty in-depth. I think they made the right decision.”

Frolik back, too

Michael Frolik also returned after missing the last two games with the flu, and he even flew to Denver commercial to keep him away from the rest of the team as much as possible.

“I think I feel good now,” he said. “I hope the flu is away. I wasn’t feeling great.”

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