Colorado Avalanche forward Matt Calvert announced in a statement today that he will be retiring from professional hockey. The 31-year-old will hang up his skates after 566 games in the NHL.
Wishing all the best to Matt Calvert, who has announced his NHL retirement after 10 seasons that included 566 regular-season games and 32 playoff games.
Full announcement and statement from @mattcalvert11 here: https://t.co/USLbJOz4u7 pic.twitter.com/KsXwoQQ0EK
— NHLPA (@NHLPA) July 22, 2021
Matt Calvert Retires
The Columbus Blue Jackets originally drafted Calvert in the fifth round of the 2008 NHL Entry draft. He made his debut with the team on January 8, 2011. Calvert would score his first career goal one game later against the Los Angeles Kings’ Jonathan Quick. The gritty winger went on to play parts of eight seasons with the Blue Jackets before signing as a free agent with the Avalanche in 2018. It was the most lucrative deal of his career – a three-year $8.55M contract. He went on to play all 82 games in his first season with his new team, reaching a career-high in points with 26. Calvert’s final game was played on March 23 against the Arizona Coyotes before ultimately missing the rest of the season to injury. He was set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 28.
Over the course of his career, Calvert accumulated 95 goals and 108 assists for a total of 203 points. He was better known for his hard-nosed style of play though, tallying 717 hits and 278 blocked shots and 376 penalty minutes. He also had 32 career playoff games.
How Calvert Will Be Remembered
Calvert wasn’t the type of player to have much personal success, nor did he necessarily want it. He was a team first guy that was willing and able to contribute wherever he was needed. However, there was one moment in particular that Blue Jackets fans may remember. On April 19, 2014, Calvert had one of the biggest games of his career. It was Game 2 against the Pittsburgh Penguins in the first round of the playoffs. Calvert scored a short-handed goal in the second period and scored the game-winner in double-overtime for a 4-3 victory. It was the first Stanley Cup Playoff win in Blue Jackets history.
Main Photo: Embed from Getty Images
