Joe Pavelski Announces Retirement from NHL After 18 Seasons

Dallas, TX — Joe Pavelski, the veteran forward who spent 18 seasons in the NHL, announced his retirement on Tuesday. Pavelski, who turned 40 on July 11, concluded his illustrious career with the Dallas Stars, where he tallied 67 points (27 goals, 40 assists) in 82 regular-season games last season. However, his impact waned in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, contributing only four points (one goal, three assists) in 19 games as the Stars fell to the Edmonton Oilers in the Western Conference Final in six games.

"I think I'm ready to step away from the game on the playing side of things and go from there," Pavelski revealed on "NHL Morning Skate" on SiriusXM. "There's no plan to play. I didn't want to use the 'r' word, I guess, right away. Just for the fact that there isn't ... nothing set in stone but that is the plan that we're not playing. I wanted just a little bit of extra time (after the season) to think about it.

"I was pretty comfortable with that plan then so I didn't want to keep people hanging and thinking and talking about certain things, but it's a pretty clear outlook. Over the last month, we've given it some more thought. ... It's just a great time for us as a family, as a career."

Following the Stars' elimination, Pavelski had hinted at his impending retirement but stopped short of making it official. "This was it for me. It was known for a while, probably," Pavelski said on June 4. "The plan is not to play next year. … I don't want to say this is official, but the plan is not to be coming back. There will be more to come on that. Everything is still so raw, nothing official. There will be more words. I'm going to need a little bit of time to really put it together and figure it out that way. Most likely that was it and couldn't ask for a better opportunity and a better group of guys to be around."

Pavelski was drafted by the San Jose Sharks in the seventh round (No. 205) of the 2003 NHL Draft. Over his career, he accumulated 1,068 points (476 goals, 592 assists) in 1,332 regular-season games, playing for both the Sharks and the Stars. He spent the last five seasons in Dallas after signing as a free agent on July 1, 2019.

Pavelski's retirement marks the end of a remarkable NHL journey, leaving behind a legacy of leadership, skill, and dedication on and off the ice.