Canadiens defenceman Chris Wideman retires from hockey
After missing the entire 2023-24 season with a back injury, Montreal Canadiens defenceman Chris Wideman has made the decision to hang up the skates.
Wideman announced the news that he would not be returning to professional hockey in an article on La Presse, a French media outlet based in Quebec.
Wideman told Lorange that he played last season with lumbar disc problems and it started to affect his daily life at home, including with normal activities such as picking up his son.
He went on to add, "I reached a point where I couldn't continue. I talked with the medical staff about what my life after hockey could look like if I didn't stop. There were a lot of doubts about how it would affect me in the long run. When we started talking about it, it became real. Life is long after a career ends."
Later on in the article, Wideman got emotional when discussing how far he's come in his career. Wideman said that going through the difficult moments, including pain, sleepless nights and demons, was worth it.
Wideman, 34, was drafted in the fourth round, 100th overall by the Ottawa Senators in 2009. The St. Louis native appeared in 291 games in the NHL across parts of six seasons with the Ottawa Senators, Edmonton Oilers, Florida Panthers and Montreal Canadiens where he had 78 points (20 goals, 58 assists), 252 penalty minutes and was a minus-27.
Source - La Presse: The end of Chris Wideman's 'eventful journey'
| POLL | ||
AVRIL 17 | 122 ANSWERS Canadiens defenceman Chris Wideman retires from hockey Will the Montreal Canadiens finish next season in a wild card spot? | ||
| Yes | 38 | 31.1 % |
| No | 84 | 68.9 % |
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