Could this year be Teemu Selanne’s last with Anaheim Ducks? -NHL Special
One of the most well known National Hockey League (NHL) players around presently definitely has to be the Anaheim Ducks right winger, aka the Finnish Flash, Teemu Selanne.
But as a disappointing 2011-2012 NHL regular season enters into the final stages, fans are probably wondering whether one of the best hockey players to have ever existed, will continue to play or throw in the towel and settle for retirement.
Selanne was contemplating retirement after the 2010-2011 season and after being talking into playing another year with Anaheim by basically everyone that could get a hold of him including teammates and Ducks management, the Finnish Flash decided to call
it for one more.
Looking at how he is playing so far, Selanne just seems to get better and better with age. He has played 77 games this season and holds 64 points (25 goals, 39 assists) and 50 minutes in penalty time, much better than a majority of the younger players in
the league. Then why could this be his last season?
Basically, Selanne never wanted to stop playing because he was in his 40’s, he rather wanted to go out healthy and rather enjoy life otherwise instead of having to leave due to a career ending injury. It is certainly not bad thinking about it, but what about
the millions of fans he has all around the world that do not want to see him quit?
Fortunately for them, Selanne in a recent interview, hinted at staying for another season by saying that there is “more inside him” that would rather keep on playing instead of calling it quits.
Now for the bad news; in the same interview, Selanne described another type of feeling that wanted him to go out healthy and happy, giving mixed signals and still no surety whether he will stay or hang up the skates for good.
"I still think I haven't lost much, so that's a good thing," Selanne said to Jeff Miller of the OC Register. "But that's also the way I want to go out. I don't want to be the guy who's just grinding and grinding and trying to survive. When I'm playing, I
want to be effective, not be the guy who looks like he's just surviving out there."
This time, it is expected that Selanne will give his final decision in due time rather than during the final moments of last year’s offseason. Going back home after the season for a few weeks and visiting family and friends will ultimately allow the player
to clear up his mind and decide for good what it is that he wants.
If Selanne returns to Anaheim for the Ducks training camp, that would be a positive sign that he is looking to make a comeback for more or else, we can expect a press conference announcing his retirement shortly after.
He also kept his contracts to a minimum, keeping it to a one-year deal for two seasons straight so that he can keep his options open. Selanne is currently one a single season contract worth $4 million.
If Teemu Selanne does decide to retire, it will definitely be one of the saddest moments in NHL history. He would also go down with one of the best records in the league as he currently has played 1,335 career games and an impressive record of 1,403 points
(661 goals, 742 assists).
The views expressed in this article are the writer's own and in no way represent Bettor.com's official editorial policy.
Tags: