Pat Maroon NHL retirement
(Photo by Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire)

HIGHLIGHTS

  • Three-time Stanley Cup champion Pat Maroon announced he’ll retire after this season in emotional pre-game interview
  • The “Big Rig” made his retirement announcement in his hometown of St. Louis, where he won his first Cup in 2019
  • Read below for Maroon’s tearful explanation about why it’s time to hang up the skates after 14 NHL seasons

Pat Maroon, the tough-as-nails forward everyone calls “Big Rig,” is hanging up the skates.

The veteran announced his retirement Saturday, breaking the news before his Chicago Blackhawks faced off against his hometown St. Louis Blues.

“Sometimes you’ve got to give up everything you know and everything you’ve dreamed of your whole life,” Maroon told Chicago Sports Network analyst Darren Pang in an emotional pregame interview. “I just know it’s time for me and it’s time for my family to go start a new chapter in our lives.”

Check out Maroon’s retirement announcement below, putting an official end to a 14-year career filled with silver hardware.

Video:

The 36-year-old St. Louis native couldn’t hide his emotions, his voice cracking several times during the interview. Maroon’s retirement announcement wasn’t even expected by his own family, who were in attendance for what became an unexpectedly memorable homecoming.

Maroon pulled off a rare feat in hockey: winning three straight Stanley Cups with two different teams. He helped the St. Louis Blues capture their first-ever championship in 2019, then went on to win back-to-back titles with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2020 and 2021. That’s a pretty exclusive club — only four players in NHL history have done it, and no one’s pulled it off since 1964.

Pat Maroon wins Stanley Cup with Tampa Bay Lightning

That 2019 run with St. Louis was especially meaningful for the hometown hero. He scored the Double OT winner in Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals against Dallas to help push the Blues toward their first Cup.

The 6-foot-3, 234-pound bruiser was never the flashiest player. But he built his career through determination, physical play and clutch contributions.

After being picked by Philadelphia in the sixth round of the 2007 draft, Maroon bounced between several organizations before finding his footing with Anaheim in 2013-14 at age 25. His wild journey included stops in Edmonton, New Jersey, Tampa Bay, Minnesota, and Boston before joining Chicago this season.

Pat Maroon of Boston Bruins

This season with the Blackhawks, Maroon has embraced a mentoring role while playing on the fourth line. He’s recorded 16 points, 95 hits, and 81 penalty minutes in 59 games. Over his 839-game career, he’s tallied 125 goals and 195 assists – numbers that don’t capture what he’s meant to every locker room he’s entered.

With Chicago out of the playoff picture and just 12 games to go, Maroon’s farewell tour is winding down fast.

“I’m just going to finish this year like every game is my last game,” he said. “I’m going to play as hard as I can.”