Gary Roberts Hangs Up His Skates, Retires
March 10, 2009 by Jeanne Dupuis
Filed under Fan Fare, NHL, News, Players
After an astonishing 22 seasons in the NHL, Gary Roberts has decided to retire. The 42-year-old veteran has played for the Calgary Flames (he won the Stanley Cup with them in his third season back in 1989), Carolina Hurricanes, Toronto Maple Leafs, Florida Panthers and Pittsburgh Penguin and was most recently dressing for the Tampa Bay Lightning. I almost feel sorry for him for having to retire from that team at the end of his career but I digress…
Roberts said: "I knew the Tampa Bay situation, with 18 games left, I knew they wanted to play the young guys. I talked with coach Rick Tocchet and he said if I earned the ice time, he would give it to me. Over the past 13 or 14 games, my game was pretty good. I’m not retiring because of health issues. I’m healthier than I was at 30… I knew if I didn’t get moved at the trade deadline, there was a possibility I wouldn’t play another game. Tampa Bay is out of the playoffs and trying to evaluate their younger players. I felt they would go that route and I understood that. I truly believed I was going to get picked up. I played well enough and I’m healthy."
I hope we see a lot of him in spite of the fact that he has now retired and, after serving the sport well for 22 seasons, I hope he enjoys some well-deserved rest and relaxation!
