Former Vancouer Canucks forward Cody Hodgson seeks return to hockey seven years after retirement

It’s been seven years since Cody Hodgson was forced to retire at 26 years old, not long after being diagnosed with malignant hyperthermia.

That rare muscle disorder, caused by a mutation in the RYR-1 gene, forced him out of the sport after splitting the 2015-16 season with the Nashville Predators and their AHL affiliate, playing 53 games.

News of his search to return to the game that had him drafted 10th overall by the Vancouver Canucks in 2008 was reported by Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.

“He understands he’s not starting in the NHL, he knows nothing is guaranteed, but he’d like to resume his career and he’s looking for an opportunity,” Friedman said during a hit on Hockey Night in Canada Saturday night.

Hodgson arrived in the pro game in 2010, playing eight games with the Canucks scoring a goal and assist while playing 52 in the American League, scoring 17 goals and 30 points with the Manitoba Moose.

He made the big club in the following season, scoring 16 goals and 33 points in 63 games, before he was traded in February 2012 to the Buffalo Sabres for Zack Kassian. He played out 20 more regular season games that year, and in the 2012-13 season, he would split time between the NHL and AHL, hitting free agency after two more years with the Sabres.

It’s there he would sign with Nashville in 2015.

“Through those final years in his short career, he suffered from shortness of breath, blackouts and heart arrhythmia,” Sportsnet’s Dan Robson wrote in 2017. “Sometimes his body would shake for no apparent reason. He was tested for a wide range of ailments, including brain and lung cancer.

“Finally, after what would be his final NHL season with the Nashville Predators, he underwent a muscle biopsy and was subsequently diagnosed with malignant hyperthermia, a genetic disorder that can be triggered by prolonged physical activity.”

Zach Laing is the Nation Network’s news director and senior columnist. He can be followed on Twitter at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach@thenationnetwork.com.