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Justin Braun Announces Retirement

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Veteran defenseman Justin Braun has officially announced his retirement from the NHL after 13 seasons, the NHL Alumni Association said today.

A seventh-round draft pick of the San Jose Sharks in 2007, Braun would go on to play over 800 games, 607 of which came in a Sharks uniform. Braun would spend nine seasons with the Sharks, where he established himself as a reliable stay-at-home defenseman. He was then traded to the Philadelphia Flyers in 2019, where he spent the next three seasons before a short stint with the New York Rangers in the 2021-22 season. However, Braun would return to Philadelphia to finish his career.

Over his 13-year career, Braun scored 199 points and played in over 100 playoff games with San Jose. He was known for his strong defensive play, physicality, and leadership qualities, which made him a valuable asset during his time in San Jose.

Braun would routinely average over 20 minutes per game in San Jose but saw a decreased role during his time in Philadelphia. Things evaporated for Braun this season, unfortunately, as he registered just two assists in 51 games and played under 15 minutes per game. With his role decreasing quickly, the writing was on the wall for the 36-year-old Minnesota product.

His best season undoubtedly came at the age of 30 in 2017-18, recording career highs in assists (28), points (33), average time on ice (21:20), and hits (143).

Despite his late selection, Braun currently ranks third in games played among defensemen from the 2007 draft, sitting only behind Kevin Shattenkirk and Ryan McDonagh. He provided incredible value for the Sharks throughout his career and would likely go in the first round of most redrafts.

Snapshots: Blackhawks, Ferraro, Cogliano, Biega

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The Blackhawks are a team that many are keeping an eye on when it comes to the trade front with long-time veterans Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews among those that could potentially be on the move between now and the March 3rd trade deadline, assuming that they’re willing to waive their trade protection.  However, GM Kyle Davidson told ESPN’s Emily Kaplan that he has yet to have any specific trade talks on any of his players just yet.  With the trade market largely being stalled out right now due to a lack of cap flexibility, there’s no immediate rush to start to get a sense of what the market might be for some of their veterans.  That should change at some point in the new year, especially when Kane and Toews decide whether they’d like to move on or if they want to remain with Chicago.

Elsewhere around the hockey world:

  • Sharks defenseman Mario Ferraro confirmed to Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News (Twitter link) that he’ll return to the lineup tonight against Calgary after missing close to four weeks with a foot injury. The 24-year-old is second on the team in ice time per game at a little under 23 minutes a night while he has chipped in with five points and 47 blocked shots in 23 games.  San Jose had an open roster spot to activate him off injured reserve so no corresponding roster move needed to be made.
  • Avalanche winger Andrew Cogliano will miss at least the next two games after suffering an upper-body injury in last night’s game against the Islanders, relays Kyle Frederickson of The Denver Gazette (Twitter link). The 35-year-old tumbled into the boards in the third period on Monday and did not return.  He has four goals and three assists in 30 games so far this season while being an important part of a bottom-six group that has gone through plenty of turnover thus far.  Now, he’ll be out until after the holiday break and will be re-evaluated at that time.
  • Veteran defenseman Alex Biega announced his retirement on his Instagram page. The 34-year-old had a 12-year professional career, seeing NHL action in eight of those seasons.  Biega suited up in 243 NHL contests between Vancouver, Detroit, and Toronto, picking up 42 points along with 624 hits.  He also got into 397 career AHL games, collecting 129 points.

Brendan Guhle Retires

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Not that long ago, Brendan Guhle was viewed as an important part of Buffalo’s rebuild and later Anaheim’s after he was traded there back in 2019.  However, he wasn’t able to establish himself in the NHL and headed overseas this past summer.  His time there, and in hockey, has come to an end though as Eisbaren Berlin announced that the 25-year-old has retired, citing personal reasons.

The 25-year-old was a second-round pick of the Sabres back in 2015 (51st overall) and got into 23 NHL games with them over parts of three seasons before being moved to the Ducks as part of the Brandon Montour trade.  Guhle had a bit of a longer look with them, getting into 42 contests over parts of three years, including six last season.

However, instead of testing free agency last summer, Guhle decided to try his hand overseas, joining Berlin in the German league.  Things didn’t go well there as an injury suffered in his first game with them in the Champions League kept him out of the lineup until the end of November.  After seven contests with them, he has decided to hang up his skates.

Guhle’s playing days come to an end with 14 points in 65 career NHL contests.  He was considerably more productive in the minors with 92 points in 199 appearances but while he could have conceivably hung around on two-way deals for a few more seasons, he’s calling it a career earlier than expected.

Devan Dubnyk Retires

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After trying his hand on the television side of things in the playoffs, veteran goaltender Devan Dubnyk has decided that it’s time to commit to that role.  The 36-year-old confirmed to Dane Mizutani of the Pioneer Press that he has hung up his skates and has joined the NHL Network where he made his regular season debut with them on Thursday night.

Dubnyk was selected 14th overall back in 2004 by Edmonton with the hopes that he’d be their goaltender of the future.  However, after some promising seasons early on (with a save percentage between .914 and .920 in his first three full years), things went off the rails in 2013-14, a year in which he wound up being traded twice and finishing up the season in the minor leagues.

But to his credit, Dubnyk bounced back the following year, starting strong with Arizona before being flipped to Minnesota where he spent parts of six seasons with the Wild, several of which as their starter.  He last played in the NHL in 2020-21 with San Jose and Colorado and got into a handful of games with AHL Charlotte last season.

Dubnyk hangs up his skates with a 253-206-54 record in 542 appearances over parts of a dozen seasons with a 2.61 GAA, a .914 SV%, and 33 shutouts.  His wins and games played total are second only to Pekka Rinne from that draft class.  In the end, while it took him a while to make his mark, it was a pretty successful on-ice career for Dubnyk who now transitions to his off-ice career in hockey.

Roman Polak Retires, Joins Columbus As A Scout

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Long-time NHL defenseman Roman Polak has decided to call it a career but he will be sticking around the game as Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that the Blue Jackets have hired him as a European scout.  Polak will replace Milan Tichy who has joined Edmonton’s scouting department.

The 36-year-old spent the last two seasons playing back home with Vitkovice of the Czech Extraliga where he was the team captain.  He had a limited role in 2021-22 and evidently decided that the time was right to hang up his skates rather than pursue another season on the ice.

Polak played in parts of 14 NHL seasons, spanning 806 career games between St. Louis, Toronto, San Jose, and Dallas.  His offensive numbers were quite limited – just 26 goals and 114 assists – but he was best known for playing a physical defensive game.  He had over 1,400 blocked shots and nearly 2,000 hits which helped him to earn seven contracts and over $24MM in his career before heading back overseas.  Now, he will begin his second NHL stint working under GM Jarmo Kekalainen, the then-scout who played a big role in him being drafted by St. Louis back in 2004.

International Notes: Jokinen, Roy, Samorukov, Kovalenko

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Long-time NHL forward Jussi Jokinen has decided to call it a career, telling NHL.com’s Varpu Sihvonen that he is hanging up his skates at the age of 38.  Jokinen played in 951 career NHL games over parts of 13 seasons with nine different teams, picking up 191 goals and 372 assists.  After spending a year in Switzerland, he returned home to play in Karpat where he spent the last two seasons.  His production dipped this season as he picked up just nine goals in 51 games which helped lead to his decision as he felt that he is no longer able to play at a high enough level to contribute as much as he wants to.  Jokinen didn’t win a Stanley Cup in the NHL but picked up five medals internationally, two at the Olympics and three at the World Championships.

More from the international game:

  • Jokinen wasn’t the only veteran announcing his retirement as Derek Roy did the same today via a post on his Instagram page. The center spent most of his 11-year career with Buffalo and suited up in 738 career games, notching 189 goals and 335 assists.  Roy last saw NHL action in 2015 before embarking on a four-country tour over the past six seasons which ended with EHC Munchen where he had four goals and five helpers in just 12 games in 2020-21.
  • CSKA Moscow of the KHL announced (Twitter link) that they have released defenseman Dmitri Samorukov, paving the way for him to return to the Oilers for next season. The 21-year-old spent last season with AHL Bakersfield but the uncertainty around the pandemic led him to stay in Russia for this season where he managed two goals and six assists in 48 games.  While he’s eligible to play in the playoffs with Edmonton, he suffered a season-ending shoulder injury so that won’t be happening.
  • Avalanche prospect Nikolai Kovalenko told Championnat’s Alexander Kozhevnikov that he is leaving Lokomotiv Yaroslavl of the KHL due to unhappiness over his role. The 2018 sixth-rounder had a limited role this season but still managed to notch five goals and six assists in 41 games.  The winger indicated that there are a couple of options he’s currently considering – signing with Colorado and coming to North America or staying in Russia and joining Ak Bars Kazan.  As Kovalenko was drafted out of Russia, his NHL rights will be held indefinitely.

Connor Hobbs Retires From Professional Hockey

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Former Capitals prospect Connor Hobbs is calling it a career, at least on the professional side of it.  The 23-year-old told Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post that injuries between his time in junior and the pros plus a loss of enthusiasm for playing have led him to make this decision.

Hobbs was a fifth-round pick of the Capitals (143rd overall) back in 2015 and showed some offensive promise at the junior level.  In his final WHL season with Regina back in 2016-17, he was the top-scoring defenseman in the league, tallying 31 goals along with 54 assists in just 67 games.

However, that failed to materialize into much success at the AHL level with Hershey.  After recording 16 points in his rookie year and 18 points in 2018-19, he was limited to just 16 games last season due to a torn rotator cuff which helped Washington decide to non-tender him earlier this month.  The injury still hasn’t healed entirely as he isn’t expected to be fully cleared until December.

Hobbs isn’t done with playing hockey entirely though as Harder notes that the blueliner is still skating with the Saskatchewan Huskies, a U Sports team even though their season was recently cancelled due to the ongoing pandemic; the Canadian college level anticipates to return in 2021-22.

Chris Thorburn Officially Retires From NHL

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It’s been more than two years since Chris Thorburn played meaningful minutes in an NHL game, but the veteran forward is officially hanging up his skates, per Sean O’Leary of The Score. The NHLPA sent along their congratulations to Thorburn via Twitter.

Thorburn, 37, got to go out in style, winning the Stanley Cup in his second year with the St. Louis Blues in 2019. The Athletic’s Jeremy Rutherford chronicled Thorburn’s final season when he spent most of the year mentoring younger players for the Blues’ AHL affiliate. The longtime enforcer appeared in 50 games for the Blues in 2017-2018 for 7:02 ATOI as a 34-year-old, finishing the year with seven points.

The veteran winger was never an All-Star, topping out usage-wise with 13:48 ATOI during the Thrashers final season in Atlanta (2010-2011). He nonetheless carved out a role as a professional skater for 14 seasons. After Buffalo made him the 50th overall selection of the 2001 entry draft, Thorburn suited up for the Sabres, Penguins, Thrashers/Jets, and Blues, totalling 53 goals and 134 points.

P.A. Parenteau Retires From Professional Hockey

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A ninth-round pick overcoming the odds to play on a top line in one of the most famous cities in the world, alongside one of the game’s premiere talents. That’s the story of P.A. Parenteau, who according to Brian Compton of NHL.com has decided to hang up his skates. Parenteau retires after trying to make it work in the KHL, and representing Canada at the Spengler Cup this year. The 35-year old forward actually told Montreal radio more than a month ago that this was what he was planning but it went mostly under the radar, much like his NHL career.

Selected 264th-overall back when the NHL draft still had more than seven rounds, Parenteau was an extreme lottery ticket for the Anaheim Ducks. The young QMJHL winger had just completed his first season of junior, but would go on to score 51 goals and 118 points the next season. Perhaps they had more than they had expected in this offensive player who didn’t have any single standout skill. Another year of junior and four years bouncing around the minor leagues before Parenteau would make his NHL debut with the Chicago Blackhawks, and another three years before becoming a regular with the New York Islanders.

That’s where he found immediate success with a young first-overall pick named John Tavares, who turned Parenteau from a minor league scoring threat to a 20-goal, 67-point NHL talent. Parenteau told Compton that playing those two seasons with Tavares “changed [his] life completely. I can retire in peace now just because of those two years.” While he likely means the peace that came knowing he finally made his long-time NHL dream come true, there is also the financial gain that Parenteau received from his two years alongside Tavares.

After that 67-point season, the Colorado Avalanche signed Parenteau to a four-year, $16MM contract that would eventually be bought out by the Montreal Canadiens. After an outstanding lockout-shortened season in 2012-13 when Parenteau had 43 points in 48 games, his career took a sharp downward turn and he’d be out of the league just a few years later. Though there was some resurgence in Toronto, when a bad Maple Leafs team gave him plenty of ice time en route to another 20-goal season, the writing was on the wall for Parenteau.

In all, the ninth-round pick will retire with 491 games played in the NHL and 296 points. Those offensive totals put him 19th among all players selected in 2001.

Waivers & Recalls: 10/04/17

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The first day of the regular season has brought a fair amount of movement already, with extensions, retirements and trades. There are also five players that have been placed on the waiver wire, while others have been recalled to play in their respective team’s opening games. Here are the minor moves from today:

Waivers:

Brandon Pirri (VGK)
Chandler Stephenson (WSH)
Joe Colborne (COL)
Eric Tangradi (DET)
Patrick Wiercioch (VAN)

Recalls:

Alex DeBrincat (CHI)
Gustav Forsling (CHI)

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