Jeremy Roenick to Call it Quits?

There is speculation that Jeremy Roenick will be ending his NHL career in a news conference on Thursday. Jeremy Roenick has played for 5 NHL teams and 2 Olympic teams over the course of his 20 year career. He was drafted in the 8th round of the 1988 NHL Entry Draft and made an immediate impact. He led his team to the playoffs for the first 12 years of his career and made a Stanley Cup appearance in 1992 while playing for the Chicago Blackhawks. He made the U.S. Olympic Team in 1998 and 2002. He has scored 513 career goals, landing him in 36th place for goals scored and making him only the 3rd American to score 500 goals in his career. He also has 703 career assists putting him in a tie for 39th place on the NHL career scoring list with a total of 1216 points.

While his play has always been solid, his attitude certainly has hindered his reputation. Roenick, known as someone who always speaks his mind, has had several outbursts that have landed him in hot water. In 1996, Roenick led his team into battle against the Colorado Avalanche in the Western Conference Semi-Finals. In one particular game, Roenick was tripped on a breakaway, yet no call was made. When asked about the incident, Patrick Roy stated that "I would have saved it anyways." When Roenick heard of this statement he responded by posing the question of "I'd like to know where Patrick was in Game 3, probably up trying to get his jock out of the rafters." What he was referring to was a play in which he had scored a breakaway goal. Roy rebuttaled with "I cannot really hear what Jeremy says because I've got two Stanley Cup rings plugging my ear."

Roenick found himself in the midst of controversy once again during the NHL Lockout of 2004-2005. Certain fans were claiming that NHL fans were spoiled. When Roenick was asked what he thought he told those fans to "kiss my ass" and stated that they were jealous. He went on to ask that those fans never again attend an NHL event or watch the games on tv.

In 2006, Roenick attacked USA Hockey, alleging that they "blackballed" him and were being disrespectful by not inviting him to join the team for the Olympics that year. In February of 2006 it was announced that Roenick was one of the NHL players being investigated in connection to a nationwide gambling ring.

It appears that although Roenick is retiring, he will still be in the spotlight. He had a brief acting stint this year as well as being a co-host on The Best Damn Sports Show. Roenick has had a great career on the ice and whether it was done intentionally or not, has set himself up for a nice career once he hangs up his skates. Love him or hate him, the truth of the matter is, fans love to watch him.