Joe Thornton officially hangs up his skates for good.

Jumbo Joe Thornton has made it official.

After over a year of not playing in the National Hockey League, veteran NHL forward Joe Thornton is calling it a career. On Saturday night, Thornton took to social media to make the announcement official and revealed that he was hanging up his skates as far as his professional hockey career is concerned.

"Hey!" said Thornton. "Judging by how many people keep asking me I guess I have to tell you I am officially retired from the NHL. Thought you guys would have figured it out sooner but you kept asking, so here I am retiring."

Thornton, the first overall pick at the 1997 NHL Entry Draft, had a historic career that saw him play a staggering 1714 NHL games in the regular season and an additional 187 playoff games over his career in the league. Thoirnton proved to be among the most durable players in the league's history and recorded a whopping 430 goals and added 1109 assists for a truly gigantic total of 1539 career points in the NHL.

In spite of tenures with the aforementioned Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Florida Panthers, Thornton will best be remembered by most as a fixture of the San Jose Sharks with whom he spent 15 NHL seasons.

Although he won't be playing hockey in the NHL anymore, Thornton is not hanging up his skates for good. The 44 year old makes it clear in his farewell video that, if you are looking to find him, the best place to go looking for Joe Thornton will still be at the hockey rink.

I wish him well in all of his future endeavors.