San Jose Sharks placed defender Marc-Edouard Vlasic in derogations Thursday after 19 seasons with the team.
The team said that the move was to buy the 38 -year -old veteran’s contract in the last year.
Vlasic appeared in 1,323 regular season games and 142 playoffs since he made his debut at the Sharks in 2006.
The Montreal native has 379 career points (84 goals, 295 assists), including three points in 27 games in 2024-25.
“It was a difficult decision to make today, with the amount of Marc for the organization of San Jose for 19 years,” said Director General Mike Grier. “I was lucky to be here with Marc for his first season with the Sharks, and I knew that he would become a great defender. During his NHL career, Vlasic was one of the first closing defenders, winning difficult defensive assignments on ice against the best players in the world and doing it with efficiency.”
Vlasic broke the NHL record for career blocked on career earlier this season and ended his stay in San Jose with 2,184.
He appeared in the playoffs 12 times with the Sharks, including a six -game defeat against the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 2016 Stanley Cup final.
Internationally, he won gold medals with Team Canada at the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi and the 2016 Hockey World Cup in Toronto. He won silver medals at the world championships in 2009 and 2017.
“With more than 1,300 NHL games, he brought an immense expertise and an experience daily to the organization, and was selected to represent his country several times at the highest level,” added Grier. “He will be part not only as one of the best defenders in the history of the franchise, but one of the best players.
“We want to thank him for his dedication and his commitment to the organization, and wish him all the best.”
Vlasic still has a season on an extension of eight years and $ 56 million he signed in July 2017, giving him a ceiling of $ 7 million for 2025-26.
The Hall of Famers Ray Bourque (Boston Bruins) and Nicklas Lidstrom (Detroit Red Wings) are the only Blueliners to play more matches with a team than Vlasic, counting the regular season and the playoffs.
– field level media