By Tyler Sonderholzer
The face of the franchise. A leader on and off the ice. One of the biggest icons in Southern California hockey. Those are only some of the statements that describe Anaheim Ducks captain Ryan Getzlaf, who announced his retirement from the National Hockey League (NHL) on April 5.
Following 17 seasons, all with the Ducks in the NHL, 12 seasons as the team captain, Getzlaf played his final game on April 24 at home in a 6-3 loss to the St. Louis Blues.
Getzlaf will go down as one of the best players in franchise history and a key contributor to the growth of hockey in Southern California.
On the Ice
Getzlaf’s on-ice accomplishments are nothing short of spectacular. He is the Ducks’ all-time leader in games played, assists and points with 282 goals, 737 assists for 1,019 points in 1,157 games played. In the Stanley Cup Playoffs, Getzlaf has 120 points in 125 games played including leading the team to their first Stanley Cup in 2007.
Even though the Ducks had two games remaining in their season, Getzlaf decided to play his final game at home in the building he has played in his whole career and in front of the fans that have been lucky to watch him play for the past 17 seasons. Even getting his final NHL point on an assist to Ducks forward Adam Henrique’s goal.
While Getzlaf has had success in the NHL, he has also found great success on the international stage for Team Canada. He helped lead Canada to win gold medals in the 2003 Under-18, meaning players under the age of 18, World Championship, 2005 World Junior Championship(players under 20), 2010 and 2014 Winter Olympics and the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.
Off the Ice
While he has made great accomplishments on the ice, Getzlaf has been very active in the community through leading the Learn to Play Hockey program by The Rinks, along with former longtime teammate Corey Perry, which provides free hockey equipment to skaters who participate in the Southern Californian program. Getzlaf’s efforts, along with the success of the team as a whole, have contributed to the growth of hockey throughout the region
Getzlaf also hosts the Getzlaf Golf Shootout and MVP Party in support of CureDuchenne, which is a nonprofit organization that aims at raising funds to help save the lives of children and young adults with Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
He has been an icon on and off the ice for all Ducks fans and has been the face of the franchise for the last decade. Whether it be making key passes to help the Ducks get a goal, or raising money to help fund research to combat diseases, his mark on Southern California will be remembered for many years to come.
