Chicago Blackhawks training camp has arrived, as have players on tryout contracts (and maybe one player who we weren’t sure would be arriving). Among the players on tryout is former New York Islanders defenseman Lubomir Visnovsky.
Visnovsky spent the last three seasons playing for the Islanders, getting into 53 games last season with five goals and 15 assists. He’s got a history of injuries and at 39 years old that’s not insignificant and will likely be a concern to the ‘Hawks as they consider signing him.
But when he’s been healthy he’s been a serviceable defenseman who could fit into Chicago’s plans and may come on the cheap with just a one-year term, due to the lack of takers he’s found over the summer in free agency.
Visnovsky joins Jan Hejda as a veteran on tryout in the Windy City, trying to find his way onto Chicago’s roster, which has depth concerns on the blue line following the exit of a number of blueliners from their 2015 Cup-winning roster.
Blackhawks invite Jan Hejda and Lubomir Visnovsky to camp on PTOs. Would certainly be solid, cheap depth options to round out D.
— James Mirtle (@mirtle) September 16, 2015
All told, Visnovsky is a veteran of 883 NHL games spread between the Los Angeles Kings, Edmonton Oilers, Anaheim Ducks and the Islanders.
Lots of familiar names are taking PTOs this season. Keep up with all the tryout contracts with The Hockey Writers’ 2015 PTO Tracker.
RELATED: Checking In With Every Unsigned RFA
Dustin Nelson is the News Editor for The Hockey Writers. He’s a contributor to Hockey Prospectus, Hockey Wilderness, and writes a column for Rotowire. He’s also written for Gone Puck Wild, Wild Xtra, InDigest, Electric Literature, The Rumpus, Tiny Mix Tapes, Prefix Magazine & other publications. Have a tip? Email him at dlukenelson[at]gmail[dot]com.
