Blackhawks winger Dale Weise playing waiting game with work visa

Dale Weise’s equipment bag was loaded onto a cart along with the others belonging to Blackhawks players for the two-game trip that will stop in Detroit and Boston on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively.

“That part will be with us,” Hawks coach Joel Quenneville on Tuesday said of Weise’s bag.

It remains to be seen whether the veteran winger also will be on the trip at some point. The winger, who was acquired from the Canadiens in a trade Friday, is in a holding pattern while awaiting a United States work visa. Winnipeg native Weise needs a visa to play for a team located in the U.S. because an American club will be paying him.

Quenneville said the hope was Weise would be able to join the team Tuesday night or Wednesday.

“If not, Plan C: Boston,” Quenneville said.

Coming soon: Marian Hossa, who hasn’t played since suffering an apparent left leg injury Feb. 13 against the Ducks, could return for Sunday’s game against the Red Wings at the United Center.

“He’s close,” Quenneville said. “After this road trip we expect him to consider the next game or so.”

Hossa last skated on Monday and is expected to continue to rehab the injury while the Hawks are away.

Satisfied: The Hawks reportedly made a late run to acquire veteran defenseman Dan Hamhuis from the Canucks but failed to reach an agreement before Monday’s trade deadline. Quenneville said he’s happy with what the Hawks have on the back end.

“We like our depth,” Quenneville said. “We have seven guys here (and) a couple of guys in the minors that we still feel are capable of playing here. I think you can never have enough depth, and sometimes things change quickly.”

Forward thinking: With the dust settling after the trade deadline, Quenneville said he likes the makeup of the Hawks as they embark on the stretch run of the regular season.

“I like our team (and) I like our motivation right now,” Quenneville said. “I think we have a stretch run here where we’d like to finish first in our division and after that, the next things will get sorted out along the way. But that’s where we’re at right now and that’s our focus. We’ll talk about the other things later.”