- Claire Thompson is retiring from hockey at 28 to return to medical school
- The Goldeneyes defender owns the Olympic points record for a blueliner
- Read below for her announcement, a highlights video and her career numbers
Claire Thompson is hanging up the skates.
The Vancouver Goldeneyes defender announced her retirement Thursday at 28 years old, stepping away from the PWHL to finish medical school. She’s back at NYU Grossman and plans to become an orthopedic surgeon. Thompson broke the news in an exclusive interview with The Athletic’s Hailey Salvian.
Thompson explained why she decided this was the moment to walk away.
“A career in medicine has always been an overarching goal of mine and I feel that now is the best time in my life to step away from hockey,” Thompson said. “I have achieved far more than I could have ever hoped for and I feel like I’m ready to step away and continue on the long road ahead of becoming an orthopedic surgeon.”
She also made it official on Instagram:
“Hockey, ily forever,” she wrote, adding that she was officially retired after 24 seasons in the sport.
Few defenders have done more on the Olympic stage. Thompson put up 13 points at the 2022 Beijing Games, the most ever by a defender in a single Olympic tournament, and Canada took home gold. She added a silver in Milan this past February. Her 17 points in 14 Olympic games are the all-time record for a defender.
Thompson brushed off the record when asked about it.
“A lot of those points came (in 2022) when our team set almost every scoring and points record there was, so I really just feel like I was in the right place at the right time,” she said.
Her pro career almost didn’t happen. Thompson sat out the PWHL’s inaugural season to start med school, then entered the 2024 draft and went third overall to the Minnesota Frost.
That rookie year went about as well as one could. She had 18 points in 30 games, made the second All-Star team, was named a Defender of the Year finalist and helped the Frost win the Walter Cup.
Vancouver then made her the first free-agent signing in Goldeneyes history. She posted four goals and 17 points in 28 games in her final season, wrapping her PWHL run with 35 points in 58 games.
Finishing at home meant a lot to her.
“Getting to play in front of Canadians and living back in Canada was something that was also really special,” Thompson said. “To be able to play my last season in Canada, in front of Canadian fans, was amazing.”
Check out her top PWHL highlights video:
Walking away while still playing at that level wasn’t easy.
“It’s definitely bittersweet, knowing that my time with (hockey) is done because I know that I’m still physically able to play and compete at (a high) level,” she said. “But I also feel very content and ready for this next chapter of my life.”
The PWHL opens Season 4 in December with a new home on Hockey Night in Canada. Vancouver will play it without the first free agent it ever signed.
