Zetterberg finishes career with numerous highlights

Henrik Zetterberg's NHL career ended Friday. The 37-year-old forward said he is unable to continue to play with the Detroit Red Wings because of a degenerative back condition. Zetterberg will be placed on long-term injured reserve; he has three seasons remaining on a 12-year contract he signed Jan. 28, 2009.

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Zetterberg is fifth in Red Wings history in points (960), goals (337) and assists (623). He also had 120 points (57 goals, 63 assists) in 137 Stanley Cup Playoff games, fifth on the Red Wings' all-time list. He succeeded
Nicklas Lidstrom
as Detroit's captain midway through the 2012-13 season.
It's been a remarkable 15 seasons for a player taken in the seventh round (No. 210) of the 1999 NHL Draft. Here are some of the highlights:

Awards

Zetterberg won one individual award for on-ice accomplishments, the Conn Smythe Trophy in 2008. He tied teammate Johan Franzen for the playoff lead with 13 goals, and tied Pittsburgh Penguins forward Sidney Crosby for the lead with 27 points. Detroit won the Cup for the fourth time since 1997 by defeating the Penguins in a six-game Final.
He was the runner-up to St. Louis Blues defenseman Barret Jackman in voting for the Calder Trophy as the top rookie in the NHL in 2002-03, when he had 44 points (22 goals, 22 assists).
Zetterberg's community service efforts were recognized in 2013 when he received the NHL Foundation Player Award. He also won the King Clancy Trophy in 2015 for leadership on and off the ice.

Best seasons

Zetterberg had NHL career highs in goals (43), points (92), game-winning goals (10, tied for most in the NHL) and plus/minus (plus-30) in 2007-08. He was voted a Second-Team All-Star, the only time in his career he was selected for a postseason honor.
His four seasons of at least 30 goals came consecutively, from 2005-06 (39) through 2008-09 (31). He had three seasons of at least 80 points, most recently in 2010-11, when he had an NHL career-high 56 assists.

Firsts and lasts

Zetterberg got his first NHL point, an assist, in his debut with the Red Wings, against the San Jose Sharks on
Oct. 10, 2002
. He scored his
first NHL goal
three nights later against the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim.
His last NHL goal and assist came in Detroit's final game of the 2017-18 season, a
4-3 overtime loss to the New York Islanders
at Little Caesars Arena.

Hat tricks

Zetterberg scored three goals in a game seven times during his NHL career, six during the regular season and once in the playoffs. His first hat trick came when he scored three times in a 4-1 road win against the Phoenix Coyotes on
Feb. 17, 2007
; the last was
Jan. 18, 2015
, in a 6-4 win against the Buffalo Sabres at Joe Louis Arena.
His only playoff hat trick came in a 7-4 road win against the Coyotes on
April 16, 2010
.

Games played

Zetterberg played in 1,082 regular-season games, tied with Brian Campbell for 209th on the all-time NHL list. He is one of seven Red Wings to play at least 1,000 games, and one of five in that group to play his entire NHL career with Detroit.
His 1,000th NHL game, on April 9, 2017, was one for the record books; it was the final game played at Joe Louis Arena. Zetterberg was honored by the Red Wings before the opening face-off, then was
named the game's first star
after scoring a goal and assisting on one by Tomas Tatar in Detroit's 4-1 win against the New Jersey Devils.
Despite the back problems, Zetterberg played all 82 games in each of the past three NHL seasons.

Triple Gold Club

Zetterberg is one of 28 players in the Triple Gold Club, meaning he's played on teams that won the Stanley Cup, the IIHF World Championship and a gold medal at the Winter Olympics.
He got the Olympic gold medal by helping Sweden win the 2006 Torino Olympics, and helped his home country win the World Championship that same year. Winning the Cup with the Red Wings two years later completed the trifecta.
Zetterberg is one of five Detroit players from the 2008 Cup-winning team who are members of the Triple Gold Club. The others are fellow Swedes Lidstrom, Niklas Kronwall and Mikael Samuelsson, as well as Pavel Datsyuk, who became the newest member of the club when the Olympic Athletes from Russia won gold at the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics. Mike Babcock, who coached that 2008 team, also is a Triple Gold Club member.