One Final Goodbye

Here's a look back who has left the NHL over the summer of 2009.

First, we will look the out-right retirements. I suspect we will see a few more announcements in the coming weeks as players give up on the possibility a NHL team may yet be interested. Here's a look at who has retired from the NHL:

Retired
------------
Bret Hedican
Teppo Numminen
David Tanabe
Scott Parker
Joe Sakic
Keith Carney
Bobby Holik
Mike Sillinger
Markus Naslund
Jason Smith
Derian Hatcher
Ken Klee
Philippe Boucher
Claude Lemieux
Jeremy Roenick
Gary Roberts
Olaf Kolzig
Patrice Brisebois

Slightly different than retiring, several players left the NHL to play in Europe, most likely to never come back. Here's that list:

Playing Overseas
------------------
P.J. Axelsson
Frantisek Kaberle
Jiri Novotny
Jiri Hudler
Sergei Zubov
Ville Peltonen
Richard Zednik
Radek Bonk
Niclas Havelid
Nikolai Zherdev
Dmitri Kalinin
J.S. Aubin
Ossi Vaananan
Sergei Fedorov
Viktor Kozlov

NHL veterans who have not yet found a team to play with, and may have played their last NHL game, include:

Unsigned Players
-----------------
Chris Chelios
Marek Malik
Mats Sundin
Miroslav Satan
Dean McAmmond
Greg De Vries
Marc-Andre Bergeron
Denis Gauthier
Chris Gratton
Michael Peca
Manny Fernandez
Dominic Moore
Rob Niedermayer
Rhett Warrener
Andre Roy
Anders Eriksson
Curtis Joseph
Darren McCarty
Marc Denis
Matt Pettinger

Let me know if you know of anyone else who should be on one of these lists.

Retirement Watch Includes Refs

My 2008 NHL Retirement Watch has three new names to list.

NHL referees Rob Shick and Mick McGeough, as well as linesman Pat Dapuzzo, are expected to retire this summer. Shick was hindered by knee problems this past season, while McGeough, who turns 51 on June 20, and Dapuzzo, 49, were slowing down. None of the three officiated the Stanley Cup playoffs this spring.

Dominik Hasek Retires

To no one's great surprise, Dominik Hasek called it a career yesterday. This time I think we can all rest assured there will be no comeback.

Playing an unorthodox flopping style that looked out of place in the era of the butterfly goaltender but due to his amazing flexibility, concentration and vision Dominik Hasek may have been the greatest goalie ever.

It is pretty tough to compare players from various eras, but more feasible to compare goalies of the same time frame. Hasek and Patrick Roy are the top of their class, with Ed Belfour and the still active Martin Brodeur right there too.

Most people will side with Roy because he had more playoff success and was more consistent. But for 6 or 7 years in Buffalo I think Dominik Hasek reached a career zenith that no one else ever attained, certainly not for that time frame. Six Vezinas, two Harts, two Pearsons, and one Olympic gold medal. He would add two Stanley Cup championships later in his career.

Well done, Dominator. You certainly will never be forgotten.

Joe Pelletier's Biography of Dominik Hasek
ESPN.com Photo Gallery
Career Statistics

Detroit Free Press - Wings Should Retire 39
MLive.com - Hasek Remembered For Acrobatics
Sports Illustrated - Hasek Was A True Original
ESPN - How Hasek Compares To Other Greats

NHL Retirement Watch

Now that the Stanley Cup playoffs are over, you can expect to hear about a few players retiring between now and early July. We've already heard about Glen Wesley hanging up the skates. Sami Kapanen will finish his career back in Finland. Chris Simon is finally out of the NHL, unbelievably signing in Russia!

Whether it is via outright retirement, inability to find a contract or a return to an European league, here's a list of players who have potentially played their last NHL games.

Anaheim
Scott Niedermayer
Teemu Selanne
Doug Weight

Atlanta
Mark Recchi

Buffalo
Teppo Numminen

Carolina
Bret Hedican

Chicago
Yanic Perreault
Andrei Zyuzin

Columbus
Michael Peca

Colorado
Peter Forsberg
Joe Sakic
Adam Foote

Dallas
Stu Barnes
Mattias Norstrom

Detroit
Dallas Drake
Darren McCarty
Dominik Hasek

Edmonton
Geoff Sanderson

Florida
Magnus Johansson

Los Angeles
Scott Thornton
Jon Klemm
Oleg Tverdovsky
Dan Cloutier

Minnesota
Chris Simon
Sean Hill
Keith Carney
Branko Radivojevic

Montreal
Bryan Smolinski
Patrice Brisebois

Nashville
Steve Sullivan
Martin Gelinas

New Jersey
Richard Matvichuk
Karel Rachunek

New York Islanders
Bryan Berard

New York Rangers
Marek Malik

Ottawa
Luke Richardson

Philadelphia
Jim Dowd
Jaroslav Modry
Jason Smith

Pittsburgh
Gary Roberts
Daryl Sydor

San Jose
Sandis Ozolinsh

St. Louis
Martin Rucinsky

Tampa Bay
Tim Taylor

Vancouver
Trevor Linden
Aaron Miller

Washington
Olaf Kolzig

2008 NHL Retirements

Earlier I speculated as to which players are candidates to leave the league or retire outright.

Here is a tracking list of who actually retired or left the league for European leagues:

Retired
Glen Wesley, Carolina Hurricanes
Dominik Hasek, Detroit Red Wings
Mattias Norstrom, Dallas Stars
Trevor Linden, Vancouver Canucks
Officials
Rob Shick
Mick McGeough
Pat Dapuzzo

Left For Europe
Chris Simon, Minnesota Wild - signed with Vityaz Podolsk Chekhov of Russia.
Sami Kapanen, Philadelphia Flyers - returning to Finland to play with KalPa Kuopio. He is part owner.
Niko Kapanen, Phoenix Coyotes - signed 2 year deal with AK Bars Kazan in Russia.