On April 05, 2022, Captain of the Anaheim Ducks Ryan Getzlaf declared that he would stop playing in the National Hockey League after this NHL season. The 36-year-old played for the Anaheim Ducks for seventeen years, including as a captain for the last eleven seasons. Getzlaf is injured now but plans on playing some more matches to complete the season. He wants to play for the team in its last home game of the season later this April.
His spouse, parents, and four kids are there to support Getzlaf, so it is no wonder he felt confident about calling it quits and life after the NHL. Getzlaf stated that he would let his mind and body determine when he would retire. When he first came to the NHL, Getzlafsaid, he felt that it would be when he was aged around 26 years. So, Getzlaf said that he lasted longer than he thought he would. Getzlaf added that it becomes more and more difficult to get up each day and prepare for each NHL season as one becomes older.
Getzlaf broke into tears many times in a recent news conference with his friends, relatives as well as erstwhile and present teammates in attendance. While Getzlaf was unsurprised to note his spouse, Paige, as an attendee at the conference, he was surprised to also see his children and parents there.
Getzlaf stated that he has made a family that he wants to return home to and described his family as an atmosphere of support around him. Getzlaf added that he wants to play with his children as he becomes older rather than watching them play. It was among the reasons for him to make the decision.
He had been thinking about retirement before this NHL season as he signed an agreement to remain with the Anaheim Ducks. However, as per sources, he only told his teammates about his plan to call it quits the other week. He has had discussions with the owners of the Anaheim Ducks about being a part of its front office team after his retirement. However, the owners are yet to formalize a role for Getzlaf at the Anaheim Ducks.
Getzlaf got picked as the nineteenth player in the 2003 NHL draft. A native of the Saskatchewan province in Canada, he is among the thirteen NHL players to have won two gold medals at the Olympics. He also has 731 assists and 282 goals from 1,150 NHL matches. He is also the leading scorer for the Anaheim Ducks in the NHL playoffs and the standard season.
Anaheim Ducks owners Susan and Henry Samueli said that they are proud of all the things that Getzlaf has achieved in a 17-year-long career for their team. They said that Getzlaf has leadership qualities as an ice hockey player as well as a community-first attitude, which has established his legacy firmly in OC. Besides spearheading the program known as the Anaheim Ducks Adult Learn to Play and many other charitable initiatives, Getzlaf launched an event such as the Getzlaf Golf Shootout that benefits CureDuchenne.
Only eleven other players have led the same NHL team for ten years and have 1,000 career points or more. Up to nine of them no longer plays in the NHL and have qualified for the Hockey Hall of Fame. Steve Yzerman, Joe Sakic, Mario Lemieux, Ray Bourque, Jean Beliveau, Alex Delvecchio, Ron Francis, and Jarome Iginla have already been inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. On the other hand, Alex Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby are two of those eleven players who are yet to be eligible for it.