Ryan Getzlaf announces retirement, will join Ducks' management staff

Longtime Anaheim Ducks captain Ryan Getzlaf has announced that he will be officially retiring at the end of this season.

"It's been an honor to play in the NHL and spend my entire professional career with one organization," said Getzlaf in a statement on the team's official website. "None of this would have been possible without my family, who offered unwavering love and support each step of the way. Thank you to our owners, Henry and Susan Samueli, for leading an organization committed to success on the ice, but more importantly, to making a positive impact in our community and to those in need.

"A special thanks to the general managers, coaches, support staff, teammates, and of course, our fans. Playing for the Ducks and living in Orange County is a dream for an athlete, and much of that is because of you. Thank you all."

ESPN's Emily Kaplan reports that Getzlaf informed teammates last week of his plans and that he has had conversations with ownership about joining the team's management staff this offseason, but no role has been formalized as of yet.

Getzlaf has been the Ducks' captain since 2010 and is one of just 11 players in NHL history who have captained the same team for a decade and have scored 1,000. Getzlaf joins the likes of Steve Yzerman, Mario Lemieux, Joe Sakic, Ray Bourque, Alex Delvecchio, Jean Beliveau, Jarome Iginla, Ron Francis, Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin in that respect. Not a bad list there...

Getzlaf helped the Ducks to a Stanley Cup championship in 2007 and is the team's all-time leader in games played, points and penalty minutes. 

There had been some speculation in recent seasons that Getzlaf may move on to another franchise either via trade or via free agency, but he opted to remain with the Ducks until the very end. And, to me, that's refreshing. How often in sports these days do we see examples of a player staying with one team their entire career? To me, Ryan Getzlaf epitomizes the Ducks more than any other player. More than Hall of Famers Teemu Selanne and Paul Kariya, even. Which leads me to the question... does Getzlaf get into the Hall of Fame?