Chelios hoping to lend considerable experience to Thrashers' playoff push

By Chris Vivlamore

March 11, 2010

COLUMBUS, Ohio --

Chris Chelios admits that he’s not completely sure why, at age 48, he continues to play hockey, which is a heck of a confession given how the NHL let him walk away last year.

But here he is nonetheless, the second oldest player to ever appear in an NHL game -- after Gordie Howe -- lacing up the skates one more time. The 25-year veteran and newest Thrashers defenseman joined the team for its game with the Columbus Blue Jackets Thursday night. His experience and leadership will be counted on heavily as the team tries to rebound from a three-game losing streak and scramble over its final 17 games into the playoffs.

“I don’t know,” Chelios said when asked why he keeps playing. “Our teams, Detroit especially the last 10 years, we had a lot of success. Not being able to crack that lineup, there were a lot of other teams I thought I could help. And then things have gone very well in [AHL] Chicago with the Wolves.

"I’m just lucky to have an opportunity and I want to make the best of it. Obviously the goal here is to make the playoffs and hopefully I can help them.”

Chelios, whose NHL career included stints in Montreal and Chicago, does have instant credibility as he enters the locker room. There are eight Thrashers who were not yet born when Chelios made his NHL debut in March 1984. He won three Stanley Cups, three Norris Trophies as the top defensive player and made 11 All-Star teams. He captained three U.S. Olympic teams. No one in league history has appeared in more playoff games (266).

Pick your credential. He’s got a pocketful.

“This is my ninth year. This is his 26th year,” Thrashers defenseman Ron Hainsey said. “If you just do the math, he’s seen three times as much as I have. You’ve got to use that knowledge that’s going to be coming to the table.”

Chelios said the best thing he can do is lead by example.

“They’ve had a tough go-round the last few games, but in hockey, every game is a playoff game,” Chelios said. “It’s a tight race. The best thing I can do for this team is to play well defensively and hopefully give these guys a little composure and it rubs off. You always learn from watching. At least that’s what I did. I hope I can contribute in some way and the best thing I can do is play solid defensively.”

Last June, when Detroit declined to re-sign him -- Chelios has been limited to 28 games due to a broken leg -- he said wanted to continue playing, but under the right circumstances. Uninvited to any NHL camp, Chelios joined AHL Chicago, the Thrashers’ minor-league affiliate, in December on a pro tryout.

The Wolves afforded him the chance to play in his hometown and be near is parents and his son, he said. He was not official property of the Thrashers until signing as a free agent last week.

It was during that 46-game stint with the Wolves that Chelios said he realized he could still play at the highest level. He was fourth in the AHL with a plus-34 rating.

“It was kind of a trial thing and it worked out,” Chelios said. “It couldn’t have gone any better than the way it has this year. ... I didn’t know about being called up. At least being successful with Chicago kept me hanging around, basically. The fact that I got off to a pretty good start in Chicago had a lot to do with it.”

Thrashers coach John Anderson said Chelios will be looked to “on the bench and in the [locker] room.” He made his Thrasher debut after just one practice with his new team.

All the while he was in Chicago, Chelios said he kept an eye southward.

“They are a good, young skilled team,” Chelios said of the Thrashers. “Obviously the trade they made to give up [Ilya] Kovalchuk, it’s a different game now. It’s more of a team game. Instead of trying to shut down one guy, you have a bunch of guys. Sometimes that tends to bring a group together and work harder. That seems to be the case. It’s going to be a tough battle. We’re only four points out. We’ll see what happens.”

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