Former San Jose Sharks captain Owen Nolan formally announced his retirement on Tuesday after 18 seasons in the National Hockey League.

He announced his decision during a news conference at HP Pavilion.

“When your body won’t do what your mind and your heart is willing to do, it’s time to move on,” said a teary-eyed Nolan, who last played in the NHL with Minnesota in 2009-10. “I’ve enjoyed every minute of it.”

Nolan, one of the NHL’s top power forwards, played in exactly 1,200 regular-season games with Quebec/Colorado, San Jose, Toronto, Phoenix, Calgary and Minnesota, scoring 422 goals and adding 463 assists for 885 points. He is 71st on the NHL’s all-time goals list. Nolan is tied with 100th in career points with former teammate Peter Forsberg.

“I was very lucky to be able to play 18 seasons in the National Hockey League,” Nolan said in a statement.  “I want to thank all of my teammates over those years, along with my friends and family.  I also want to thank Doug Wilson and the San Jose Sharks for allowing me the opportunity to step away from the game as a member of the Sharks family.”

Nolan, who turns 40 on February 12, was selected by the Quebec Nordiques with the first pick in the 1990 NHL Draft.

Acquired by San Jose from Colorado on Oct. 26, 1995 in exchange for defenseman Sandis Ozolinsh, Nolan would go on to become one of the top players in Sharks history, playing 568 games with the Sharks and scoring 206 goals as well as 245 assists for 451 points with 934 penalty minutes.  He was named the fifth captain in franchise history on Oct. 28, 1998.

Nolan’s finest NHL season came in 1999-2000, when he set career-highs in goals (44), points (84) and had a League-high 18 power-play goals. He finished fifth in voting for the Hart Trophy, awarded to the NHL’s most valuable player.  That year, he was voted as the “Sharks Player of the Year” by the Bay Area media, leading the team in goals, points, shots (258), power-play goals, hits (209), shorthanded goals (4), takeaways (70) and average ice time (21:07).

“Owen Nolan was a dominating player on the ice and remains an important member of the history of the San Jose Sharks franchise,” Sharks Executive Vice President and General Manager Doug Wilson said in a statement.  “We feel that it is only fitting that he announces the conclusion of a great career as a member of the Sharks family. “We congratulate Owen, along with his wife, Diana, and their family, on a remarkable career.”

Nolan signed a one-day deal so that he could officially retire as a member of the San Jose Sharks.


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