Marc Andre Fleury puts retirement off and signs another contract
Moments ago, news broke that the legendary goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury will return for another season, signing a one year contract with the Minnesota Wild.
At 39 years old and with 1024 games played, retirement has obviously been in the discussion for the veteran goalie. Throughout this last season, Fleury remained adamant about staying in Minnesota through the trade deadline, and even said that he'd only sign with the Wild, or retire. For $2.5M, Fleury will lace up the skates again for another year.
Minnesota has two young star goalies emerging in their system in Jesper Wallstedt and Filip Gustavsson, which may have complicated the decision to sign the much older Fleury. By signing the veteran, Minnesota is signalling that they intend to compete for the playoffs again next year, and want Fleury back in perhaps a mentor role for the young guys. That said, Fleury's workload this season was a heavy 39 games.
This season was the first time Fleury's level of goaltending declined, posting a save percentage below .900 for the first time since his rookie season. Fleury's also lost his record of 17 straight playoff appearances with the Wild missing out this year. Still, Fleury clearly has a burning passion to play hockey and be with his teammates - and he's still a high-level goaltender. All hockey fans will be glad to see this slam dunk hall of famer back for another season.
| POLL | ||
Will Fleury retire after this contract is up? | ||
| Yes, for sure | 208 | 73.8 % |
| No, I don't think so | 69 | 24.5 % |
| See Results | 5 | 1.8 % |
| List of polls | ||
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