At the age of 37, Paul Stastny has decided to retire. The forward had terminated his contract with the Hurricanes last summer and this week announced the decision via The Athletic.
"At the beginning of September we decided this was over. I didn't put anything on social media. I came into the league quietly and I'm leaving the same way. It' s the way I want to," the player explained to the aforementioned media outlet.
Born in Quebec, Stastny was selected 44th overall in the 2005 draft by Colorado, where he ended up making his debut a year later. He wore the Avalanche jersey for 8 seasons, until he left for St. Louis, a franchise where he stayed for 4 years, although he did not finish the last one, but was traded to the Winnipeg Jets in the middle of the season. The following summer he signed with the Golden Knights, who were playing their second season in the NHL. He returned to the Jets in the midst of the pandemic and, in 2022, he packed his bags to play in Carolina.
His career, in numbers
Over the course of 1,145 games, the Canadian player has scored 293 goals and dished out 529 assists. In addition, in 118 playoff games, he scored 73 points, although he was never able to win the Stanley Cup. He left the Blues in the 17/18 season and the Missouri franchise became champions the following year.
Among his personal achievements, he was selected in the 05/06 season for the All-Rookie Team, as well as for the All-Star Game in 2012.
His last big moment was the game-winning goal he scored last season for the Hurricanes in Game 6 of the first round of the playoffs against the New York Islanders. Carolina took the series 4-2, then also eliminated the New Jersey Devils (4-1), but was swept in the Conference Finals by the Florida Panthers (4-0).