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Alex Chiasson Announces Retirement

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A long-time middle-six scorer is officially hanging up his skates. Originally announced by himself and then shared by the National Hockey League Players’ Association, Alex Chiasson is retiring after spending a few years off the ice.

The Dallas Stars drafted Chiasson with the 38th overall pick of the 2009 NHL Draft out of the USHL’s Des Moines Buccaneers program. Instead of immediately turning professional, Chiasson joined the Boston University Terriers for the 2009-10 NCAA season one year after they won the National Championship. Unfortunately, Chiasson would fail to reach the Frozen Four throughout his three-year tenure with Boston University.

He still became an effective playmaker at the collegiate level. He finished his NCAA career with 36 goals and 99 points in 108 games before signing his entry-level contract after the 2011-12 campaign. Chiasson started quickly with the AHL’s Texas Stars, scoring one goal and five points in nine contests.

Much of the next calendar year was spent in AHL Texas until Dallas recalled Chiasson in early April of the 2012-13 season to debut in the NHL. After scoring six goals and seven points in seven games to end the regular season, Chiasson became an NHL regular for the next decade.

Chiasson scored 13 goals and 35 points in 79 games during his official rookie season, which would be his last with the Stars. The following summer, he was acquired by the Ottawa Senators organization as a part of the return package for franchise icon Jason Spezza.

Although he became one of the better players from the trade for Spezza, his time in Canada’s capital was mostly disappointing. He finished his tenure in Ottawa with 19 goals and 40 points in 153 games before arduous contract negotiations led to a trade to the Calgary Flames in the summer of 2016.

After a solid year as a depth scorer for the Flames, Chiasson signed with the Washington Capitals for the 2017-18 season. He won his first and only Stanley Cup that year, scoring one goal and one assist in 16 playoff games for the Capitals.

It wasn’t until he joined the Edmonton Oilers that Chiasson experienced the most personal success of his career. During his time with the Oilers, Chiasson scored 42 goals and 78 points in 183 games, including a 22-goal campaign in the 2018-19 season.

Chiasson’s final game came on April 13, 2023, as a member of the Detroit Red Wings one year after spending the season with the Vancouver Canucks. He ended his career with 120 goals and 233 points in 651 games with another four goals and seven points in 37 postseason contests.

All of us at PHR extend our best wishes to Alex as he enters the next chapter of his life.

Justin Schultz Announces Retirement

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Right-shot defenseman Justin Schultz has terminated his contract with Switzerland’s HC Lugano and “ended his career with immediate effect for strictly personal reasons,” the club said in a statement Friday.

“Mine is a strictly personal choice,” Schultz said through the team. “I discussed it with my family, and I made the decision to end my career here and return to Canada. I thank Hockey Club Lugano for the professionalism shown and for respecting my choice, and I wish the club and the team to find the path to success again.”

Schultz, now 34, had signed with Lugano in late October after not landing any NHL offers as an unrestricted free agent over the summer. Before retiring, he made eight appearances for the National League club, posting six assists and a -3 rating.

The British Columbia native was selected by the Ducks in the second round of the 2008 draft out of the British Columbia Hockey League’s Westside Warriors. He played one more season of junior ’A’ before jumping to the University of Wisconsin, where he racked up 113 points in 121 games in three seasons, twice being named to the NCAA West First All-American Team. But coming out of school in the 2012 offseason, he didn’t come to an agreement with Anaheim on an entry-level contract and instead landed one with the Oilers after reaching free agency.

Schultz got some AHL action at the beginning of the 2012-13 campaign due to the lockout that cost the league nearly half the season. However, after posting 48 points in just 34 games, he was named to Edmonton’s opening night roster and never touched minor-league ice again. The offensively gifted yet defensively challenged Schultz spent parts of four seasons in Alberta, logging top-four minutes on a rebuilding Oilers defense. After posting 101 points in 248 games, logging a -78 rating and averaging north of 22 minutes per game, Edmonton shipped him east to the Penguins before the 2016 trade deadline.

Schultz flourished in Pittsburgh, winning two Stanley Cup rings in his first two seasons with the franchise. He was used sparingly in their 2016 run to the championship, averaging 14:14 per game down the stretch and even less than that in the playoffs. But in 2016-17, his first entire season in Pennsylvania, he erupted for a career-high 12 goals, 39 assists, 51 points, and a +27 rating in 78 regular-season appearances, gaining additional ice time with No. 1 option Kris Letang missing half the season with injuries. He finished 10th in Norris Trophy voting and kept the momentum rolling in the playoffs, quarterbacking the team’s top power-play unit and leading their blue line in scoring with 13 points in 21 contests as the Penguins became the first team since the Red Wings in 1997 and 1998.

The 6’2″ righty continued to be a serviceable top-four option with the Pens over the next few years, but his point pace and defensive play both began to falter as time passed. A lower left-leg fracture cost him most of the 2018-19 campaign, and after more lower-body injuries limited him to 12 points in 46 games the following year, Pittsburgh let him hit unrestricted free agency.

Schultz landed a two-year, $8MM pact with the rival Capitals. His tenure in D.C. was solid but unremarkable, totaling 50 points in 120 games with a -3 rating. By the end of his two-year deal, he’d firmly established himself as a power-play specialist, averaging a career-low 16:55 per game in his second season.

Once again a free agent, Schultz opted to join the second-year Kraken on a two-year, $6MM deal. In year one, he recorded 34 points in 73 games – his highest total since his career-best 2016-17 campaign – and helped Seattle to its first playoff appearance in franchise history. Once again, he carried his upward momentum into the postseason, tying for third on the Kraken with 10 points in 14 games as they advanced to Game 7 of the Second Round.

Schultz saw his ice time further reduced to a new career-low 16:28 in Seattle last season, posting 26 points in 70 games – 10 of which came on the power play. His -23 rating ranked last on the team, although the Kraken still largely controlled the quality of possession while he was on the ice at even strength. Nonetheless, no team viewed him as an everyday option anymore, and he ended up making a brief go of things in Switzerland after not landing an NHL contract or tryout.

He ends his 12-year NHL career with 71 goals, 253 assists, 324 points, and a -57 rating in 745 games. Seventeen of his career goals – nearly 24% – were game-winners. We at PHR congratulate him on a lengthy career and wish him the best in all his future endeavors.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Kevin Shattenkirk Announces Retirement

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Unrestricted free agent defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk has announced his retirement after 14 NHL seasons and 952 regular-season games, per an NHLPA release. The 35-year-old wrote a lengthy message to his seven NHL teams, their staffs, and his family, and shouted out many other specific helpers and mentors, one you can read entirely on his X account.

The 6’0″, 212-lb Shattenkirk made his NHL debut four seasons after being drafted 14th overall by the Avalanche in 2007, but the Boston University product didn’t last long in a Colorado uniform. After recording seven goals and 26 points in his first 46 NHL games for the Avs, they dealt him to the Blues in a blockbuster trade before the 2011 deadline that saw former first-overall pick Erik Johnson head the other way.

By the time the 2011-12 season rolled around, he’d established himself as a fixture in the Blues’ top four, posting 43 points and a +20 rating in his sophomore season while placing 18th in Norris Trophy voting. “Shatty” went on to have the most productive years of his career in St. Louis, routinely averaging over 20 minutes per game, earning Norris votes three times, and totaling 59 goals and 258 points in 425 regular-season games as a Blue. He ranks seventh in Blues franchise history in goals, assists and points and sits 12th on the all-time franchise games played list among blue-liners.

St. Louis routinely made the postseason with Shattenkirk in tow but only advanced past the first round twice. But with Shattenkirk in the final season of his contract in the 2016-17 campaign and set to earn a considerable raise on his previous $4.25MM cap hit, St. Louis made him arguably the top rental acquisition available at the 2017 deadline and shipped him to the Capitals for a haul that included a first-round pick, later flipped to the Flyers to acquire future captain Brayden Schenn (Philadelphia used the selection to draft Morgan Frost). Shattenkirk managed 14 points in 19 regular-season contests for Washington but hit a rut in the postseason, limited to a goal and six assists in 13 games with a -4 rating as the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Caps were upset by the Penguins in the Second Round.

Shattenkirk understandably wasn’t brought back and hit free agency that offseason, inking a rich four-year, $26.6MM commitment with the Rangers. However, his offensive production and possession play dipped significantly upon arriving in Manhattan. After posting a career-worst 0.38 points per game and a -15 rating in the 2018-19 campaign, New York bought out the final two seasons of his contract and made him a UFA again ahead of schedule.

He landed a one-year, $1.75MM pact with the Lightning, receiving reduced minutes on a stacked defense core that featured names like Victor Hedman, Ryan McDonagh and Mikhail Sergachev ahead of him on the depth chart. He responded with 34 points in 70 games, a much-improved 53.7 CF%, and added 13 points in 25 playoff games as he captured his first and only Stanley Cup.

Shattenkirk became a free agent again at season’s end. After rebuilding his market value in Tampa, he inked another multi-year deal, heading back to the Western Conference on a three-year, $11.7MM pact with the rebuilding Ducks. Anaheim had just a 71-114-35 record in Shattenkirk’s three seasons in Orange County. However, the New York native still averaged top-four minutes and posted 77 points in 212 appearances as a stable veteran presence along with Cam Fowler on an otherwise inexperienced Ducks back end.

After his tenure in Anaheim quietly ended in 2023, he joined the Bruins on a cheap one-year deal for the 2023-24 campaign. He played a supporting depth role more than anything else, serving as a semi-routine healthy scratch for the first time and averaging a career-low 15:47 per game. The right-shot defender still contributed 24 points in 61 games and received second-unit power-play duties, but that wasn’t enough to generate interest in a guaranteed deal for this season. Shattenkirk was connected to several teams on potential tryouts late in the offseason but opted not to sign any and didn’t participate in a training camp.

With Shattenkirk’s NHL career now officially in the rearview mirror, one of the few unsigned options on defense for teams still looking to add experienced depth is now off the market. He closes the book on a lengthy run in the pros that saw him record 103 goals, 381 assists and 484 points in 952 games. Along the way, he totaled 544 PIMs, 1,886 shots on goal, 928 hits, and averaged 20:17 per game for his career. His estimated career earnings total $60.725MM, per PuckPedia.

All of us at PHR extend our best wishes to Kevin as he enters the post-playing phase of his hockey journey.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Matt Irwin Announces Retirement

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Unrestricted free agent defenseman Matt Irwin is stepping away from the game, the NHLPA announced. He confirms his retirement after 10 NHL seasons and 461 appearances.

“As I reflect on my career, I can’t help but feel incredibly grateful and fortunate to have lived out my childhood dream of playing in the NHL,” Irwin said in a statement released by the players’ association. “My success would not have been possible without the support of my family, my in-laws and especially my wife, Chantel, and two kids, Beckem and Lennon. You all pushed me to be the best version of myself on and off the ice.”

“I’m fortunate to have been surrounded by the best group of teammates that I could have possibly asked for,” Irwin continued. “Each and every one of them made coming to the rink the best years of my life. I hope our paths cross somewhere down the road.”

Now 36, Irwin never played major junior hockey and instead jumped straight from the junior ’A’ BCHL to NCAA hockey with UMass. The left-shot defender spent two seasons there before signing as an undrafted free agent with the Sharks in 2010, kicking off his professional career.

Irwin spent two full seasons with San Jose’s AHL affiliate, then in Worcester, Massachusetts, before receiving his first NHL recall in 2012-13. He appeared in 38 of 48 games for the Sharks during the lockout-shortened season, recording 12 points and a -1 rating while averaging 19:06 per game and finishing 19th in Calder Trophy voting. Irwin also played in all 11 of San Jose’s playoff games as he got an audition in top-pairing minutes at even strength alongside Dan Boyle.

The Victoria, British Columbia native managed to stick around as a full-time NHLer for the following two seasons in the Bay Area but steadily saw his minutes reduced. After a 2014-15 campaign that saw him record a career-high eight goals, Irwin became an unrestricted free agent and signed with the Bruins.

However, Irwin only made two NHL appearances in a Boston sweater, instead spending nearly all of the 2015-16 season on assignment to AHL Providence. Understandably, he was one-and-done with the Bruins, and landed a deal with the Predators in free agency the following offseason.

It was the right choice for Irwin, who ended up playing 195 games in parts of four seasons in Nashville – the most of the six NHL franchises he appeared for. Aside from four appearances for AHL Milwaukee in 2016-17, Irwin managed to avoid being sent to the minors for the next seven years, sticking around in bottom-pairing/press box roles for the Predators, Ducks, Sabres, and Capitals.

Irwin’s last NHL games came with Washington in 2022-23. He recorded five points, a -8 rating and 36 PIMs in 61 games along with 75 blocks and 117 hits. He signed a two-way contract with the Canucks for 2023-24 but didn’t make the team, instead spending all of 2023-24 on assignment to AHL Abbotsford, where he recorded 16 points (5 G, 11 A) and a +2 rating in 65 games while serving as an alternate captain.

Irwin closes the book on his NHL career with 25 goals, 68 assists, 93 points, and a -9 rating in 461 games. He also logged 211 PIMs, 725 shots and a respectable 50.6 CF% at even strength while averaging 15:26 per game. He also appeared in 47 playoff games for the Sharks and Preds in 2013, 2014, 2017, and 2018, most notably playing in all 22 postseason contests as Nashville advanced to the only Stanley Cup Final in franchise history in 2017.

Irwin also logged 314 AHL appearances in parts of seven minor-league seasons, totaling 32 goals and 103 assists for 135 points. All of us at Pro Hockey Rumors extend our best wishes to Irwin in retirement.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Anton Strålman To Retire

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Longtime NHL defender Anton Strålman has retired, as noted by Robin Olausson of Hockey Sverige. Neither he nor the NHL Alumni Association have made an official announcement, but he’s now joined Swedish women’s soccer club Skultorps IF as a coach, Olausson said.

Strålman’s NHL career all but ended over a year ago. After managing to land a contract off a PTO with the Bruins in training camp in 2022, he failed to stick around at the NHL level, playing just eight games for Boston and spending a good chunk of the 2022-23 campaign in AHL Providence. A free agent last summer, he returned home to put a bookend on his career by suiting up for HV71 of the Swedish Hockey League, where he had 16 points (2 G, 14 A), 10 PIMs, and a -12 rating in 48 games. He added an assist and a +3 rating in their relegation series against IK Oskarshamn to help them stay at the top level of the Swedish pyramid.

The 38-year-old was once one of the more underrated two-way defenders in the NHL. Drafted 216th overall by the Maple Leafs in 2005, Strålman broke into the NHL three years later. After a pair of seasons covering depth bottom-pairing duties for Toronto, he was traded to the Flames and then flipped again to the Blue Jackets in the 2009 offseason.

The move to Columbus is what truly jumpstarted his career. Strålman’s first season in Ohio saw him average over 20 minutes per game and break out for 34 points in 73 contests. He’d regress to a goal and 18 points in 51 games the following year, though, marking the end of his brief stint with the Jackets. He was non-tendered and became a UFA in 2011 at the age of 24, and he needed to wait until after the 2011-12 campaign started to catch on with his next NHL team – the Rangers.

In New York, Strålman’s game never popped offensively, but he did do well to establish himself as a reliable defensive presence who could shoulder second-pairing minutes. He averaged 18:22 per game in the Big Apple with solid possession metrics, posting a 54.3 CF% in front of expert goaltending from Henrik Lundqvist to lead to a cumulative +32 rating in 182 appearances for the Rangers, adding seven goals and 31 assists for 38 points.

That showing boosted his market value significantly heading into free agency in 2014, landing a five-year, $22.5MM deal with the Lightning that stands as the most lucrative contract of his career. His play popped accordingly in Tampa Bay, immediately making an impact with a career-high 30 assists and 39 points in 82 games before the Bolts marched their way to the Stanley Cup Final. Strålman maintained a high level of play in Tampa, averaging around 30 points per 82 games and logging nearly 22 minutes per game, with a cumulative +80 rating across his five-year deal.

Unfortunately, he wasn’t a part of their three straight Stanley Cup Final runs from 2020 to 2022. He priced himself out of Tampa upon reaching free agency again in 2019, instead inking a three-year, $16.5MM contract with the intrastate rival Panthers. That marked the beginning of the end of his NHL career, and by Year 2 of the contract, he’d fallen out of a top-four role. He had nine points in 38 games for Florida in 2020-21, leading them to surrender a second-round pick to dump the final year of his deal at a $5.5MM cap hit on the Coyotes.

Strålman did have a brief resurgence on a thin Arizona blue line, rebounding for 23 points in 74 games in 2021-22 while averaging 21:20 per game. It was his best offensive total in five years, and his highest usage in four, but his once-sparking possession metrics continued to dip below average. He needed the aforementioned PTO with Boston to keep his NHL career alive the following year before heading home in 2023.

All told, Strålman finishes his NHL career with 63 goals, 230 assists, 293 points, a +46 rating, and a 51.3 CF% in 938 appearances while averaging nearly 20 minutes per game. He made the Stanley Cup Final in back-to-back years with the Rangers and Lightning and totaled 26 points and a -4 rating in 113 playoff games. PHR wishes Strålman the best in the next phase of his career.

Riley Sheahan Announces Retirement

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Longtime Detroit Red Wings forward Riley Sheahan has announced his retirement from professional hockey, per an article from Bill Potrecz of BP Sports Niagara. Sheahan was a 2010 first-round pick and went on to play in 637 NHL games and 120 AHL games across a 12-year career, spanning six NHL franchises. Sheahan hasn’t played since the 2022-23 season when he left a middling role with the Buffalo Sabres and Rochester Americans for 12 games with EHC Biel-Bienne of Switzerland’s top league.

Sheahan’s was drafted after his freshman season at the University of Notre Dame, and played through his junior year before turning pro at the end of the 2011-12 season. His 66 points across 114 games with the Fighting Irish quickly translated to the pro flight, with Sheahan scoring 38 points across his first 79 games in the AHL. He was up to an NHL role by 2013-14, scoring 24 points in 42 games as a rookie – just enough to solidify an everyday spot on Detroit’s fourth line. The responsible and hard-nosed winger supported Detroit through the next four seasons before a 2017 trade sent him to Pittsburgh in a swap for Scott Wilson and draft picks. Sheahan’s role didn’t grow much in Pittsburgh, and he was flipped roughly one season later in Pittsburgh’s acquisition of Nick Bjugstad and Jared McCann from Florida. That second trade kicked off Sheahan’s journeyman tenure – as he’d go through moves north to Edmonton, east to Buffalo, and west to Seattle over the course of the next three seasons. He served as a depth forward everywhere he went, only surpassing the 25-point mark three times in his career – the 2014-15 (36), 2015-16 (25), and 2017-18 (32) seasons.

Sheahan struggled with injuries through his later career, landing on IR in 2019, 2021, and 2022. The final designation – a move to IR on October 7, 2022 – was the result of an undisclosed injury, and Sheahan would only play in eight more games in North American pros before his career came to a close. He’ll now hang up his skates having scored 194 points in the NHL and 61 in the AHL. Sheahan shared with Potrecz that he’s now supporting Sunday night development skates with the Niagara North Stars, and said he hasn’t closed off the idea of trying to grow his coaching role one day – though he emphasized that his wife and two young children will come first.

Artem Anisimov Announces Retirement

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Veteran forward Artem Anisimov has retired, the NHLPA confirmed today. The 36-year-old hangs up his skates after a 13-year run in the NHL with four different teams.

It marks the end of a very respectable career for the Russian center, whom the Rangers selected in the second round of the 2006 draft. A solid two-way pick out of the Lokomotiv Yaroslavl organization, he was in North America with AHL Hartford one year later and had cracked New York’s NHL roster as a full-timer beginning with his age 21 season.

Anisimov was an extremely reliable middle-six piece over his first few seasons. After making the Rangers’ opening night roster for the first time in 2009, he would go nearly two and a half years without missing a game. Anisimov churned out 12 goals and 16 assists for 28 points in his first NHL campaign before having his best year in New York in his sophomore year, finishing fifth on the team in scoring in 2010-11 with 44 points (18 G, 16 A) while averaging 16:12 per game and taking over 700 draws.

The 2012 offseason brought an end to Anisimov’s time in Manhattan, however. He was one of many pieces sent to the Blue Jackets in that summer’s blockbuster swap that sent Rick Nash to New York. His tenure in Columbus was met with a bit less fanfare, struggling a bit with injuries and seeing slightly diminished possession impacts compared to his time with the Rangers. He did, however, set a career-high in goals with 22 while with the Jackets in 2013-14, helping the franchise to their second playoff appearance in team history.

A pending unrestricted free agent entering the 2015 offseason, it was clear Anisimov’s long-term future wasn’t in Columbus. He was sent to the Blackhawks in a swap that essentially amounted to a one-for-one deal with Brandon Saad going the other way, with none of the minor assets included in the trade having any long-term relevance. Unfortunately for Anisimov, he joined Chicago on the back end of their championship window and never captured a ring with them. But he did have the best years of his career in the Windy City after signing a five-year, $22.75MM extension. He hit the 20-goal mark three years in a row and earned Selke votes in 2016.

After totaling 155 points in 291 games with the Hawks, he was sent to the Senators for Zack Smith. Injuries finally caught up to him after a relatively healthy career, though, limiting him to 68 appearances over the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons. He never landed another NHL contract after becoming a UFA in 2021, but it wasn’t for lack of trying. After spending the 2021-22 campaign back home with Lokomotiv, he played out the last two campaigns on AHL deals with the Flyers’ and Rangers’ affiliates in search of another NHL try that never came.

In 771 career appearances, Anisimov put together 180 goals, 196 assists, and 376 points. He recorded a -17 rating, 214 PIMs, and a 46.1% career win rate in the dot. He also added 17 points in 43 postseason games with the Rangers (2009, 2011, 2012), Blue Jackets (2014), and Blackhawks (2016, 2017). His career earnings totaled nearly $37.5MM, per CapWages. All of us at PHR congratulate Anisimov on his strong career.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Atlantic Notes: Maple Leafs Injuries, Swayman, Pitlick, Mersch

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Injured Maple Leafs Connor Dewar, Jani Hakanpää, Calle Järnkrok, and John Tavares all skated during practice Monday, albeit in non-contact jerseys on a separate sheet of ice away from the main group (via TSN’s Mark Masters).

Dewar and Hakanpää are recovering from shoulder and knee injuries dating back to the end of last season, while Järnkrok and Tavares are dealing with lower-body injuries sustained during preseason. None of their availabilities for opening night have been confirmed, although especially in Dewar and Hakanpää’s case, the fact they’re skating means their absences shouldn’t stretch too far past the start of the regular season if they’re unable to go. Järnkrok and Tavares remain listed as day-to-day.

That could certainly throw a wrench into the Leafs’ opening night roster if neither Dewar nor Hakanpää will be out long enough to be eligible to land on long-term injured reserve. Toronto is $1.07MM over the salary cap with a full projected roster, per PuckPedia, but could easily become compliant by waiving defenseman Conor Timmins and assigning him to the minors. That doesn’t leave enough room to sign either Steven Lorentz or Max Pacioretty to league-minimum contracts off their PTOs, though.

Head coach Craig Berube said later Monday that he expects Järnkrok and Tavares to take part in the next practice, so their availability for the start of the season should be considered likely at worst (via The Hockey News’ David Alter).

Elsewhere in the Atlantic:

  • There’s still no end in sight to the contract negotiation stalemate between the Bruins and restricted free agent netminder Jeremy Swayman. But when the end arrives, all signs still point to the goalie staying in Boston. Neither side has any interest in starting up preliminary trade talks for his signing rights, even amid an unusually difficult set of talks, The Athletic’s Fluto Shinzawa relays. “Swayman wants to be a Bruin. The feeling is mutual,” he wrote.
  • Still with Boston, veteran winger Tyler Pitlick will attend their AHL affiliate, the Providence Bruins’, training camp on a PTO, reports the New England Hockey Journal’s Mark Divver. It’s quite a steep fall down the hockey ladder for the 32-year-old who appeared in 34 games with the Rangers last season on a one-way deal before landing on waivers in February and spending the rest of the season with AHL Hartford. Pitlick, a bottom-six defensive presence for most of his 10-year, 420-game career, was limited to four points with the Rangers and seven points in 22 games with Hartford last year.
  • Former Kings forward and longtime Sabres depth piece Michael Mersch announced his retirement Monday. The 31-year-old had spent the last four seasons with Buffalo’s AHL affiliate, the Rochester Americans, serving as captain since 2021. A fourth-round pick of Los Angeles in 2011, Mersch posted 188 goals, 213 assists, and 401 points in 597 AHL games in parts of 11 seasons with the Kings’, Sabres’, and Stars’ affiliates. He played 17 NHL games, all with Los Angeles in the 2015-16 campaign, recording a goal and two assists.

Bryan Little Announces Retirement

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Longtime center for the Atlanta Thrashers and Winnipeg Jets, Bryan Little, will retire on October 20th after signing a one-day contract with the Jets organization as the team announced. Little spent the first four years of his career with the Thrashers before spending the last nine in Winnipeg after the team relocated for the 2011-12 season.

Little was selected with the 12th overall pick of the 2006 NHL Draft by the Thrashers after a tremendous season with the OHL’s Barrie Colts. In his draft season and the year following, Little scored a whopping 83 goals and 216 points in 121 games and quickly became a top prospect for Atlanta. He finally debuted for the team in the 2007-08 season scoring six goals and 16 points in 48 games in his rookie campaign.

He quickly became the top center for the struggling Thrashers organization at a young age. He struggled to produce points similarly to his time in the OHL but Little still scored 62 goals and 133 points in 234 games to close out his tenure in Atlanta. The team failed to make the playoffs in each of Little’s four seasons despite making it the year before his debut and moved on from talented teammates Ilya Kovalchuk and Marian Hossa during his tenure.

Little became a stable presence for the new rendition of the Jets after the team struggled early on. The team failed to produce a winning record in its first three years back in Winnipeg, but Little stayed consistent with 54 goals and 142 points in 204 games while averaging a 49.0% success rate in the faceoff dot. The organization committed to Little down the middle with a five-year, $23.5MM contract in 2013.

The Jets became much more competitive starting in the 2014-15 season making the playoffs four out of Little’s last six seasons with the organization including a trip to the Western Conference Finals in 2018. He maintained his scoring pace down the stretch with 93 goals and 225 points in 350 games with another four goals and 12 points in 27 postseason contests. During this window, the organization signed Little to his second long-term deal by inking a six-year, $31.75MM contract.

Unfortunately Little would not see the end of this contract with the Jets organization. He sustained a concussion in a preseason game before the 2019-20 season but started the season on time. On November 5th against the New Jersey Devils, Little took a shot to his ear and missed the remainder of the season. He received surgery in February to repair a perforated eardrum but he had already played his last NHL contest.

Winnipeg finally traded Little’s contract to the Arizona Coyotes in 2022 after keeping him on LTIR for some time. The Coyotes continued to hold Little on LTIR as it became apparent he wouldn’t be able to suit up in the NHL again. Little’s contract finally ran its course this offseason technically making him a free agent for the first time.

Little will now retire with the only organization he has ever known. His 13-year career will end with 217 goals and 521 points in 843 contests between the Thrashers and Jets’ organizations. In a statement, Little said, “It’s a great honour that I can retire as a member of the Winnipeg Jets and end my playing career with the organization where I was drafted and played my entire NHL career. I had the privilege to play in Winnipeg and in front of the amazing fans for nine seasons, so I’m grateful for the opportunity to thank the Jets, their fans and the city of Winnipeg. It will truly be a full circle moment for my family and I to celebrate my retirement in the building where I have so many special memories“.

Jaromír Jágr To Retire Following 2024-25 Season

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The 2024-25 season will be 52-year-old Jaromír Jágr’s last playing professional hockey. The all-time great will retire following the 2024-25 season, he told Rob Rossi of The Athletic over the phone Thursday.

It’s been over six years since the Flames assigned Jágr to Rytíři Kladno in Czechia, his hometown club, to play out the back half of a one-year deal he signed with Calgary for the 2017-18 season. That marked the end of his 24-year, 1,733-game NHL career, but it didn’t signal the end of his days playing at the professional level.

Jágr has been Kladno’s majority owner since 2011. The Penguins’ fifth overall pick in 1990 played his first two professional seasons with the club in the Czechoslovak top league before being drafted. He also played there during NHL lockouts in 1994, 2004-05, and 2012.

But by the time Jágr returned during his age 45 season, Kladno had been demoted from the top-level Czech Extraliga to the country’s second-tier pro league. Since his return, though, Kladno has stayed in the Extraliga for five out of the last eight seasons. Jágr was a force in helping them gain their initial promotion back to the top level, scoring 10 goals in 11 qualification games in 2019 to boost them back to the Extraliga for the 2019-20 campaign.

Now in his 37th season of professional hockey, Jágr is understandably no longer a premier force on the ice. The right-winger was limited to 15 regular-season appearances for Kladno last year, posting four assists and a -4 rating. He was in the lineup for Kladno’s Extraliga regular-season opener Wednesday, though, posting an assist and a -1 rating in 14:26 of ice time. It was a promising showing after tearing his hamstring less than a month ago, putting his availability for yesterday’s game in doubt.

Jágr’s NHL résumé needs no introduction. He may have never lifted the Stanley Cup in his prime, only winning it back-to-back with Pittsburgh in his first two NHL campaigns, but he was a game-changing threat in the NHL’s most offensively challenging era. Jágr won five scoring titles, including four straight from 1998 to 2001, and also won the Pearson Award (now the Ted Lindsay Award) as the most outstanding player as selected by their peers on three occasions (1999, 2000, 2006).

On the NHL’s all-time leaderboard, Jágr ranks fourth in games played, fourth in goals (766), fifth in assists (1,155), and second in points (1,921). He’s also a member of the Triple Gold Club, powering the Czechs to a gold medal at the 1998 Winter Olympics and winning a pair of World Championship gold medals (2005, 2010).

While Jágr donned the sweater of nine NHL teams – the Penguins, Rangers, Capitals, Panthers, Devils, Flyers, Bruins, Stars, and Flames – he’ll always best be remembered for his peak years in Pittsburgh. That’s where he’ll likely return after his playing days are done next year. Rossi reported in May that the club was working to hire Jágr in a front-office role whenever he was ready to transition to the next chapter of his hockey career.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

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