Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Niedermayer Calls It a Day

There will be no lingering questions about the future of Scott Niedermayer past Tuesday afternoon, as he has announced his retirement from the NHL and the Anaheim Ducks.  The 36-year old blueliner, a veteran of 18 seasons and 1,263 NHL games will call it a career, closing out one of the best careers by a defenseman, both in the NHL, junior and internationally.

Niedermayer concluded the 2010 season with a career total of 172 goals, 568 assists for 740 points, four Stanley Cups, one Norris Trophy, played in five NHL All-Star Games, NHL All-Rookie Team, NHL First Team All-Star three times, NHL Second Team All-Star once, Memorial Cup winner, World Junior gold medalist and two-time Olympic gold medalist.  Yes, it's safe to say, he's a well-decorated player in his career. 

In his final season with the Anaheim Ducks, Niedermayer finished 12th among NHL defensemen in scoring with 10 goals and 38 assists in 80 games, which was a very good season, but was down from his 2009 numbers, where he was ranked 4th among NHL defensemen in scoring.  The Ducks also missed the playoffs and are likely now going to start building anew with this new news today.

Niedermayer's retirement will also save the Ducks a large sum against the salary cap, as his number in 2010 was $6 million.

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