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Marc-Andre Fleury Reveals Why He Decided to Join Blackhawks

Marc-Andre Fleury filled in the media on what went into his decision to join the Chicago Blackhawks after not wanting to be traded.

Goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury confirmed a couple of days ago that he was ready to join the Chicago Blackhawks organization and play the final year of his NHL contract. Retiring or joining a new team was a decision the veteran netminder felt he was forced to make after he was traded by the Vegas Golden Knights for next-to-nothing in return. Fleury didn’t want to leave but the Golden Knights couldn’t afford to keep him.

Related: Marc-Andre Fleury Informs Blackhawks He’ll Play Next Season

In the days following Fleury’s announcement, he’s talking about what led to his decision not to retire.


As per @ByScottPowers, Fleury noted his reaction to the trade and what’s happened since: “A little bit crazy, right. Obviously there’s a lot that goes into it. I’m very fortunate that Stan gave me some time to reflect on what I wanted to do, to do what’s best for me and my family.”

While he was getting a chance to think it over he said he talked to former players Cam Ward, Chris Kunitz and Craig Adams about the Blackhawks. After also speaking with Robin Lehner — who spent 33 games with the Blackhawks organization in 2019-20 — Fleury said, “I keep hearing so many great things about the team and how they treat the players and the families.”

One thing he did make clear was that any hesitation he had wasn’t about playing in Chicago. “I never had anything against Chicago, the organization. It was just me personally, what I wanted to do. I’ve talked to a bunch of guys, I keep hearing so many great things about the team.” And, as he looks over the team and some of the changes the roster has made, he can see there’s potential to win. He noted that Patrick Kane is still a scary player to play against and said, “I thought Stan [Bowman] did a great job to gain some players over the summer, try to make this team competitive right away and that’s also very appealing.”

Will Fleury Stick Around?

It’s far too soon to know if Fleury intends to do anything more than call Chicago his home team for his final season. He noted he was worried about Vegas at first too and then learned to love it and was hoping to finish his career there. Perhaps change simply isn’t his favorite thing but he adapts well. Who knows, if the Blackhawks play well, he might want to stick around beyond this coming season.

Then again, if the team isn’t as good as he’s hoping they’ll be, he might be traded. The Blackhawks gave up practically nothing to acquire him and will certainly be able to trade him for a decent draft pick at the deadline if they aren’t in the playoff hunt.

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