Kukla's Korner Hockey

Kukla's Korner Hockey

"The Gunk"

06/22/2017 at 8:36am EDT

Former Red Wings goalie Gilles Gilbert described a debilitating skin condition that eventually drove him to retirement as something he wouldn't wish on "my worst enemy."

"Maybe broken legs, but not the rash," he told the New York Times in 1982. "You need boxing gloves when you go to sleep. It's worse than a sunburn. It really, really itches. It drives you crazy. When you start sweating, it's worse."

Hockey players in the 1970s and '80s referred to this simply as "the gunk" during a time when the mysterious condition afflicted many of them. More recently, there have been few publicized cases in the NHL.

In announcing Wednesday that Marian Hossa will sit out the 2017-18 season because of side effects from medication to treat a "progressive skin disorder," the Blackhawks declined to specify Hossa's condition or treatment.from Shannon Ryan of the Chicago Tribune,

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Paul Kukla founded Kukla’s Korner in 2005 and the site has since become the must-read site on the ‘net for all the latest happenings around the NHL.

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