Paul Stastny is retiring from the NHL after 17 seasons.
The 37-year-old forward told The Athletic this week that he made the decision around the time training camps opened for this season.
“I haven’t filed anything, but in early September we decided we were done,” Stastny said.
“I didn’t put anything out on social media or anything. I kind of came into the League quietly, and I’m leaving the League quietly. That’s the way I like it. All the people close to me know, and then word always gets out eventually.”
A second-round pick (No. 44) by the Colorado Avalanche in the 2005 NHL Draft, Stastny had 822 points (293 goals, 529 assists) in 1,145 regular-season games with the Avalanche, St. Louis Blues, Winnipeg Jets, Vegas Golden Knights and Carolina Hurricanes, and 73 points (30 goals, 43 assists) in 118 Stanley Cup Playoff games.
Last season, Stastny had 22 points (nine goals, 13 assists) in 73 regular-season games for the Hurricanes. He also had four goals in 15 playoff games, including scoring the series-clincher in overtime against the New York Islanders in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference First Round.
The son of Hockey Hall of Fame forward Peter Stastny, Paul said he turned to his father for advice before making his decision.
“He’s always about, ‘Take the emotion out of it, let things settle, have a clear head,’ right?” Paul said. “We’re both pretty even-keeled when it comes to decisions like that.
“For both of us, a big thing was leaving on your own terms.”
