Keith Primeau today said officially that he will retire from the game of hockey. The Flyers captain has not played since last fall.
His down fall has been hard to watch, because it isn't that he doesn't want to play, or he is too old, to put it bluntly he is just too messed up to play hockey anymore. He had way too man concussions and now it effects his everyday life. He has dizzy spells, trouble sleeping and still seems out of it at times.
However, he wanted to come back. The final images of the Flyers in 2004 will always stick out in my mind. Primeau gave one of the best performances by any Philly athlete that spring. He was just a man on a mission scoring big goals, getting the team together and leading the team to what looked like a Stanley Cup Final.
That never happened, the Flyers were ousted by the Tampa Bay Lightening who went on to win the cup that year. I still recall Primeau standing there quietly at the end of the game. You got the sense he knew that was his last shot. At the time the lockout was looming which would eventually wipe out all a whole season. His health than was bad enough that he likely should not have even been playing. I think he realized that he wasn't ever going to be 100 percent.
When the Flyers came back he was knocked out early in the season and never returned despite several attempts. Now Peter Forsberg will be the team captain. Looking down the roster I guess it was the best choice. He has a lot of work to do. Most the team from last year is gone, which is good because it was a pretty bad team. Let's face it the 2004 playoff team was much, much better than that lifeless team last year.
It is a rough day for Flyers fans, but we all saw it coming. He will be missed and his career forever unfulfilled. I have to say though, it would have been a terrible idea for him to play again. He could have really been hurt. Hope he sticks around the game in some way.