<p>Alex Goligoski, whose 17-year NHL career included a Stanley Cup championship with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2009, announced his retirement on Thursday in an interview with <em>The Athletic</em>‘s Joe Smith.</p>



<p>The 39-year-old Goligoski, who hails from Grand Rapids, Minnesota, appeared in 36 games with the Minnesota Wild during the 2023-24 regular season, collecting 10 assists while averaging 14:49 of ice time.</p>



<p>The Goligoski family recently welcomed a third child, a son named Luka, and Alex told Smith that he wishes to spend more time with his children but would also “love” to eventually become an NHL general manager.</p>



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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Alex Goligoski had an idea this would be his final <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NHL?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NHL</a> season, but neither he nor his wife expected what became a 'dream' retirement gift: their miracle son, Luka. Caught up w/ Goligoski + family on finishing at home, life after hockey + more <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/mnwild?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#mnwild</a> <a href="https://t.co/OnxWy7Pvjf">https://t.co/OnxWy7Pvjf</a></p><div class="injected-ad injected-video" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="0" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="144"></div>— Joe Smith (@JoeSmithNHL) <a href="https://twitter.com/JoeSmithNHL/status/1831754042160394309?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 5, 2024</a></blockquote><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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<p>The Pittsburgh Penguins originally selected Goligoski, a 5’11” left-handed defenseman, in the second round (No. 61 overall) of the 2004 NHL Draft. After a successful NCAA career at the University of Minnesota, Goligoski made his NHL debut with the Penguins in the 2007-08 season.</p>



<p>Goligoski skated in parts of four seasons with the Penguins to begin his NHL career before being traded to the Dallas Stars midway through the 2010-11 campaign in exchange for fellow defenseman Matt Niskanen and winger James Neal. After finishing the year with the Stars, Goligoski spent five more full seasons in Dallas, scoring a career-high 42 points in 2013-14.</p>



<p>The Arizona Coyotes acquired Goligoski’s signing rights from the Stars as he neared unrestricted free agency in 2016, and they successfully signed the veteran defender to a five-year deal. Goligoski remained productive over his five seasons in the desert and averaged at least 23 minutes per game in four of his five years with the club.</p><div class="injected-ad" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="1" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="160"></div>



<p>After joining his hometown Wild in 2021, Goligoski racked up 30 points in 2021-22 but subsequently found himself in an unfamiliar role as a reserve player over the following two seasons. He managed just 16 points in 82 games over the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons with the Wild.</p>



<p>Over his entire 1,078-game NHL career with the Penguins, Stars, Coyotes, and Wild, Goligoski collected 87 goals and 455 points; he added seven goals and 21 points in 47 playoff games with those four clubs.</p>
