Tough day for NHL as concussions force Rick Nash to retire

As a result of concussions, veteran forward Rick Nash is retiring from the NHL, and it’s a big loss for the league.

In professional sports, you always want to see an athlete go out on his or her own terms. That’s how you know they believe their career has been truly fulfilled. Unfortunately for Rick Nash, as well as the NHL, he won’t get that opportunity. He announced on Friday that he will be retiring from the NHL after 15 seasons due to concussion-related symptoms.

Nash, who spent time in his career playing for the Columbus Blue Jackets, New York Rangers and Boston Bruins, released a statement through his agent Joe Resnick.

“Due to unresolved issues/symptoms from the concussion sustained last March, Rick Nash will be forced to retire from the game of hockey,” the statement said, via Darren Dreger. “Under the advice of his medical team, the risk of further brain injury is far too great if Rick returns to play. Rick would like to thank everyone who has supported him during this difficult time period.”

Even though Nash is retiring much earlier than expected, that isn’t to say that he hasn’t had a very long and colorful career in the NHL. He was the No. 1 overall selection in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft and went on to play 1,060 games from 2002-2018. Nash scored 437 goals and recorded 805 points, was a six-time All-Star, won two Olympic gold medals, and scored at least 20 goals in all but two of his 15 NHL seasons (hitting 40 goals three times).

Nash accomplished plenty during his career. But retiring at 34, he still had plenty of hockey left in the tank. It’s not uncommon for hockey players to play 20-plus years in the NHL, and it stings heavily for the league to see something as unfortunate as concussions put an early end to a sensational career.

Nash spent most of his career playing for the Blue Jackets, and hopefully one day soon, his No. 61 will be raised to the rafters at the Nationwide Arena.