By Jordan Long
The NHL season is well underway. Free Agent Center Paul Stastny decided to retire. He spent 17 years in the NHL.
Stastny was drafted by the Colorado Avalanche in the 2nd round of the 2005 NHL Draft. This was after playing for the University of Denver from 2004-2006. In his two seasons, Stastny established himself as one of the best college players in the nation. He totaled 36 goals and 62 assists for a total of 98 points. The University of Denver won two national titles with Stastny.
In his first year in the NHL, 2006 to 2007, he made an immediate impact. He scored 28 goals and added 50 assists for a total of 78 points, a career high. Colorado missed the postseason by one point. The very next year, Stastny’s stats went down with 24 goals and 47 assists for 71 points. This time Colorado earned a playoff spot and advanced to the second round where they were swept by Detroit. In the playoff run, Stastny had 2 goals and 1 assist.
Stastny stayed in Colorado until the end of the 2014 season. In that time Colorado earned a playoff spot two more times, 2010 and 2014. Colorado was beaten in the first round in both years. Stastny was a free agent following 2014. Colorado wanted to keep Stastny but he decided to sign with the St. Louis Blues on July 1st, 2014. The deal was 4 years and worth $28 million. Stastny finished with 160 goals and 298 assists for 458 points in an Avalanche sweater.
Stastny spent 2014 to February 26, 2018 with St. Louis. In a Blues’ uniform, Stastny lit the lamp 56 times while adding 119 assists for a total of 175 points. St. Louis earned a playoff spot 3 times, 2015, 2016, and 2017. St. Louis advanced to the Western Conference Finals in 2016 but were beaten in 6 games by San Jose.
St. Louis dealt Stastny to the Winnipeg Jets on February 26, 2018. He was going to be a free agent at the end of the year so he was a “rental” for the rest of the year. With the Jets, Stastny put up 4 goals and 9 assists for a total of 13 points. The Jets earned a playoff spot. They went to the Western Conference Finals but Vegas knocked them off in 5 games.
Stastny was a free agent. Stastny agreed to a 3-year deal worth $19.5 million with the Vegas Golden Knights. Vegas went to the playoffs in 2019 and 2020. 2019, Vegas was knocked out in the first round. 2020, the NHL season ended in the bubble setting. Vegas, unfortunately, had their season end in the Western Conference Finals.
Stastny was traded back to Winnipeg on October 9, 2020 where he would stay for the next 2-years. The Jets made the playoffs in 2021. They were beaten in the 2nd round.
Last year, Stastny played for Carolina. He showed his age at 37 years old. He scored just 9 goals and 13 assists for 22 points. Once Carolina’s season ended in the Eastern Conference Finals, Stastny was a free agent again and was deciding his NHL future.
Stastny decided it was time to retire from the NHL game. According to ESPN.com, Stastny said, “I haven’t filed anything, but in early September we decided we were done. 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.”
In his career, Stastny played 1,145 regular season games, scoring 293 goals and 529 assists for a total of 822 points. Stastny also appeared in 118 playoff games. He scored 30 goals and added 43 assists for a total of 73 points.
Stastny never had a chance to win a Cup, the only thing missing on his resume. Even if he played this year, there was no guarantee he would have won it this year. Stastny leaves the game as a skater who played it the right way. He will be missed in the game.
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