*Photo from Sportsnet*
One of the great faces of the New Jersey Devils is hanging up the skates. C Travis Zajac has signed a one day contract with the Devils and has announced his retirement after 15 seasons in the NHL, according to both the Devils and Zajac.
Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald said in a statement that "Everyone in the NHL appreciates that Travis Zajac's work ethic and style of play were reflective of the New Jersey Devils. His training, discipline, and focus rubbed off on every player who walked into that locker room over his 15-year career."
Despite retiring from hockey, the Devils also subsequently announced that Zajac will be remaining with the team, as he will join the team in an on and off ice player development and consulting role, and he will also work to grow youth hockey in New Jersey. Zajac played for the Devils in all but 13 regular season games and 14 playoff games after being traded at this year's trade deadline to the New York Islanders.
Between the Devils and Islanders last season, Zajac posted 8 goals and 12 assists in the regular season, with a -1 plus/minus in an ATOI of 16:26 per game, playing in 46 regular season games. In 14 playoff games with the Islanders, Zajac registered one goal and one assist, as the Islanders went all the way to the Eastern Conference Final, where they lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Zajac said of choosing to retire that "After just taking time off I really didn't have that desire to keep training, keep pushing myself. I kind of feel like I ran out of a little gas, and being around the family a lot more was starting to have a real big impact on my life. Being home for dinners, being around the kids' sports, involved in school, that was a lot of fun to me and I really love being a part of that. The sacrifices you have to make to continue to play, I didn't have that internal push to really keep going."
In his 15 seasons in the NHL, Zajac has amassed 203 goals and 349 assists, with a -20 plus/minus in an ATOI of 18:40, suiting up for 1,037 regular season games. In 71 career playoff games, Zajac has 12 goals and 18 assists, making the playoffs in 7 of his 15 seasons.
Zajac retires in 4th place in Devils history in games played, with 1,024. He's 3rd overall in team history in total points, with 550, tied for 3rd in goals with 202, and 5th in assists with 348. He never won a Stanley cup, but did lead the Devils to the 2012 Stanley cup finals, where they lost to the Los Angeles Kings.
Comments
Post a Comment