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‘Hawks not rushing Hossa, Sharp back from injuries

Marian Hossa and Patrick Sharp

With a five-point lead over slumping Anaheim for first place in the Western Conference, the Chicago Blackhawks won’t rush star forwards Marian Hossa and Patrick Sharp back from injury.

Hossa (shoulder) and Sharp (shoulder) skated with the Blackhawks Thursday, but neither were taking contact and neither will play tomorrow versus the Ducks at the United Center.

“The conditioning is pretty good, but the strength needs to be better,” Hossa said, per CSNChicago.com. “Obviously, you want to make sure you’re 100 percent when you come back instead of coming back early and hurting it again. When I’m ready to play, I’ll play.”

‘Hawks coach Joel Quenneville says the club will wait until Hossa and Sharp are “more than ready” before they get back into the lineup.

“It doesn’t hurt the position we’re in,” said Quenneville. “They’ll tell us when they’re ready and we’ll look at everything, including the schedule, and make sure when they do get in they’ll be ready to go.”

The Blackhawks beat Calgary, 2-0, on Tuesday, but are a modest 4-4-0 in their last eight games.