Filppula retires from professional hockey after 22 seasons, 16 in NHL

Valtteri Filppula retired from professional hockey Tuesday after 22 seasons, 16 in the NHL.

The 41-year-old forward played in the League between 2005 and 2021, including 10 seasons with the Detroit Red Wings. He had 530 points (197 goals, 333 assists) in 1,056 games for the Red Wings, Tampa Bay Lightning, Philadelphia Flyers and New York Islanders, and 86 points (25 goals, 61 assists) in 166 Stanley Cup Playoff games.

Filppula, a native of Vantaa, Finland, won the Stanley Cup with the Red Wings in 2008. He began playing pro hockey in 2003-04 for Jokerit in Liiga, the top professional league in Finland. He left the NHL in 2021 after returning to the Red Wings for two seasons and played two more with Geneve-Servette in National League, the top pro league in Switzerland, before returning home to become player-owner of Jokerit in Mestis, Finland's second division.

"I think if everything goes as planned right now, it would be a really great way to step out and let the young guys play," Filppula said during the 2024 NHL Global Series presented by Fastenal in Helsinki. "I'm excited. I hope it goes well."

Filppula is a member of the "Triple Gold Club" as owner of a Stanley Cup ring and gold medals in the 2022 Beijing Olympics and the 2022 IIHF World Championship. The third-round pick of the Red Wings (No. 95) in the 2002 NHL Draft had 11 points (five goals, six assists) in 22 playoff games during Detroit's run to the Cup.

"Val is everything for Jokerit," Sivire Manninan, a fan supporting the team for two decades, said at the Global Series. "He started here, and he came back; 40 years old and he comes back here. It means everything to this team and this organization."

NHL.com senior director of editorial Shawn P. Roarke contributed to this report