After 14 seasons in the NHL, including seven in St. Louis, defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk retired yesterday. The news came out all over social media, and many outlets, fans, and teams were quick to congratulate him on a fantastic career.
As a Stanley Cup winner with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2020, his resume is nothing short of impressive. Furthermore, he helped revolutionize a key part of the game, as he specialized in being the “quarterback” of the power play.
Hall of fame bound?
After 952 games, 103 goals and 381 assists, Shattenkirk was fantastic throughout his career. Drafted by Colorado in with the 14th pick of the 2007 NHL Entry Draft, he was quickly traded off to St. Louis after just ___ games with the club. In a deal that sent Ty Rattie and Chris Stewart to Colorado, the Blues got Shattenkirk for what would be seven solid seasons.
He would then be dealt to Washington in 2017 and signed with the New York Rangers later that summer. Then he was onto the Tampa Bay Lightning where he won his one and only Stanley Cup in 2020. Finally, he would move on to Anaheim and then Boston to finish out his career.
One of the key things that made Shattenkirk such an elite defenseman, especially with the Blues, was his ability to “quarterback” the power play. He was the guy at the point, constantly having the puck on his stick and finding lanes to pass and holes in the defense. That was a huge difference in his game that set him above and beyond the rest. During his 14-year career, he netted 44 power-play goals and added 166 assists with the man advantage.
Is it good enough to call it a hall-of-fame career? I think so, nearly 1000 games played, nearly 500 points from the blue line, and his name etched into the side of Lord Stanley. I think it even goes further beyond that, with #22 hanging up inside Enterprise Arena shortly.