Another Staal is calling it a career!
According to an announcement Thursday from NHL.com, veteran defenseman Marc Staal is retiring from the league following 17 seasons.
But while Staal may no longer be a player in the NHL, that doesn’t mean he won’t be in the league whatsoever. Immediately after the retirement news, it was announced that Staal would join the New York Rangers as their player development assistant. New York is the franchise he spent most of his career with. (RELATED: Leon Draisaitl Inks Historic $112 Million Extension With Oilers That Sees Him Become The Highest-Paid Player In NHL)
Staal’s retirement also comes a little more than a month following his older brother, Eric, also announcing his retirement. He inked a one-day deal with the Carolina Hurricanes so he could retire with the organization.
Staal was a Ranger from the 2007-08 season all the way to 2020-21, making an appearance with the team in the 2014 Stanley Cup Final. New York lost that series against the Los Angeles Kings.
Marc Staal retires after 17 NHL seasons, joins Rangers as player development assistant:https://t.co/0bBd7kvgvD
— NHL.com (@NHLdotcom) September 5, 2024
What a perfect way for Marc Staal to close out his playing days.
I’m sure it’s quite the sad experience to retire from the only thing you’ve ever known since a kid, so to end things by instantly landing a new job in the same sport, yeah, that’s pretty cool. And on top of that, he’s got himself a gig in New York City with a championship contender who plays their home games at the iconic Madison Square Garden.
Sweet deal.