Retirement Announcement

Brooks Laich formally announces his retirement from hockey: ‘I am beyond grateful’

Three years after playing his last NHL hockey game, Brooks Laich, 38, formally announced his retirement from professional hockey on Friday. “It’s been a difficult journey for me to finally arrive at the state where I am happy say the words ‘I am retiring,'” Laich wrote on Instagram. “Every athlete experiences this transition differently, and though the process went slower than I had hoped, I am excited to have finally arrived at peace with it.”

Laich, who spent the vast majority of his career with the Washington Capitals, played his final season in the NHL during the 2017-18 season where he suited up in 12 games for the Los Angeles Kings.

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By Ian Oland 4 weeks ago

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Howie Kendrick, a key member of the Washington Nationals’ World Series team, announces retirement

Howie Kendrick has decided to hang up his cleats a week after Mike Rizzo and Davey Martinez said they expected the DH and second baseman would return.

Kendrick announced his retirement on Instagram. The 37-year-old slugger played 15 years in the MLB and was a major reason why the Washington Nationals won the World Series in 2019.

“I will be forever grateful for the many life lessons baseball has taught me on this 32 year journey,” Kendrick wrote.

He also had a special message for the Nationals. “[T]hank you for embracing me as one of your own. I feel as though I’d been a National my whole career and the wild, humbling and crazy ride we had in 2019 truly culminated everything I’d learned in my career, and we all became World Champions.

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By Ian Oland 7 months ago

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Former Capital Wojtek Wolski, who successfully rehabbed a broken neck, announces retirement from hockey

After 14 years of professional hockey, eight of which were spent in the NHL, Wojtek Wolski is calling it a career at age 34. Wolski was one of the greatest shootout specialists in NHL history and a bonafide top-six player early in his career.

Wolski, who played 27 games with the Washington Capitals, announced his retirement on Instagram.

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By Ian Oland 7 months ago

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Capitals prospect Connor Hobbs retires at 23 after several major injuries and seven concussions: ‘I was really in a dark place’

Former Capitals defenseman Connor Hobbs is retiring from the NHL at age 23. The Regina Leader-Post’s Greg Harder first reported the news.

Hobbs was initially a restricted free agent before the Capitals decided to not tender him a qualifying order on October 7, making him an unrestricted free agent.

Instead of signing elsewhere, Hobbs chose to end his NHL career, but will still play hockey – albeit not professionally.

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By Ian Oland 9 months ago

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Capitals post tribute video for Mike Green after defenseman announces retirement

Longtime Capitals defenseman Mike Green retired on Wednesday after 15 seasons in the NHL.

The Capitals created a tribute video for the two-time All-Star defenseman and Norris Trophy finalist in honor of the announcement.

“Congratulations to @GreenLife52 on your fantastic career and thank you for a decade of great memories on and off the ice in DC,” the Capitals wrote. “We wish you all the best in your next adventure!”

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By Ian Oland 11 months ago

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Mike Green officially announces retirement

Former Capital Mike Green confirmed he is indeed retiring two weeks after a report surfaced from Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.

The Athletic’s Tarik El-Bashir released a feature on Green Wednesday which explained why the former Young Gun was choosing to hang up his skates at age 34.

Green wants to spend more time with his family, help others in the community, and focus more on evolving passions.

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By Cara Bahniuk 11 months ago

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Capitals legend Martin Erat officially announces retirement

Martin Erat, an Olympic bronze medalist and one of the greatest hockey players in Nashville Predators history, has officially retired. The Czech forward was also part of the most controversial trade in Washington Capitals history, which many fans regard as the franchise’s worst.

After spending one season in the KHL and his last four in the Czech Extraliga playing for HC Kometa Brno, Erat, at age 38, has opted to spend more time with his family.

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By Ian Oland 1 year ago

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Roberto Luongo retires after 19 seasons in the NHL

A day after both Brooks Orpik and Matt Hendricks retired from the NHL, Roberto Luongo followed suit. Luongo announced his retirement after 19 seasons in the NHL, splitting his time between the Florida Panthers, Vancouver Canucks, and New York Islanders.

The 40-year-old ends his NHL tenure with 489 career wins, third of all time behind Martin Brodeur and Patrick Roy.

Luongo announced his retirement on Twitter with a joke about Florida retirement homes. His tweet was accompanied by a photo of a pair of goalie pads stung over an electrical wire next to a pair of sneakers.

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By Cara Bahniuk 2 years ago

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Former Capitals forward Joel Ward says he is retired from professional hockey

While in Charlottetown for the University of Prince Edward Island’s Men’s Hockey Alumni Day, former Caps winger and fan favorite, Joel Ward announced that he considers himself retired from professional hockey.

After a career spanning 11 seasons in the NHL, “The Big Cheese” is hanging up the skates at the age of 38.

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By Chris Cerullo 2 years ago

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Predators Mike Fisher announces retirement, thanks Nashville hockey fans

On June 11, 17,271 fans rocked Bridgestone Arena for Game Six of the Stanley Cup Final. The Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Nashville Predators 2-0 and took the Cup that night, but anyone who was there will remember the support Music City gave its hockey team.

For Mike Fisher, that night was a terrific sendoff for his hockey career. The 37-year-old center announced his retirement Thursday morning.

“I can still picture it vividly,” Fisher, a veteran of 17 NHL seasons wrote in an op-ed in The Tennessean. “I gasped. How was there that many people there? And all to support us? It was almost incomprehensible.”

While Fisher called the day “bittersweet” — the Preds lost after all — he knew wouldn’t play a game quite like that ever again.

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By Chris Gordon 4 years ago

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