Sunday marked the end of long-time NHLer Andrew Ladd's 16-season career after he announced his retirement at the age of 37. Ladd was drafted fourth overall in the 2004 draft and would spend the first three seasons of his career in Carolina, winning the Cup in 2006. Ladd was then dealt to Chicago in 2008 where he would win another Cup as a member of the 2010 Hawks team. He played out the rest of his 16 seasons with the Atlanta Thrashers, Winnipeg Jets, New York Islanders, and Arizona Coyotes.
"The time has come for my next chapter," said Ladd in the statement he released on Twitter. "When I was a kid I never thought I had a chance to make a living playing hockey. There was my love for the game. I loved being a part of a team, I loved competing, I loved the next chance to win, I loved the challenge, I loved the escape of immersing myself in the moment, I loved the feeling of belonging, I loved the confidence it gave me, I loved proving people wrongI'll be forever grateful for how the game shaped me as [a] person and the people it brought into my life," concluded Ladd.
Injuries hampered the latter stages of his career, with Ladd having played just 80 total games since the 2018-19 season and missing all of last season. Ladd finished his career with 1,001 career regular seasln games, recording 256 goals and 550 points over his 16 NHL seasons.
