Carbonneau says 'it's over'

July 2, 2000
By Mike Heika / The Dallas Morning News

Guy Carbonneau, 40, said his NHL career was everything it could have been - especially the ending.

Carbonneau said Saturday that he has officially retired from an 18-year NHL career, and added that walking off the ice at Reunion Arena to cheers of "Ghheee," after the Stars lost Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals was emotionally stirring.

"I knew then that it was over, and when I heard the crowd yelling, it was like I knew it was right," Carbonneau said from his home in Montreal. "I always said I wanted to go out on my terms, that I didn't want to be chased out of the game. And I think I did that this year. I think I went out on a great note, on a good season for me and a great season for the team."

Carbonneau said he made his decision to retire at the end of the regular season, but didn't tell anyone. Even after the end of the playoffs, he said he decided to wait a few weeks before talking to Stars' general manager Bob Gainey about the future.

The Stars had the option to pick up another year on Carbonneau's contract, and both Gainey and Carbonneau said they wanted to discuss the issue before the first day of free agency, which was Saturday. Carbonneau and Gainey met last week, and the two said the decision was confirmed at that time.

"He left his mark here, and that's a special quality," Gainey said of Carbonneau becoming a team favorite and fan favorite. "And I'm sure he'll leave his mark in whatever he chooses to do next."

Carbonneau said Gainey told him a job was open in the Stars' system if he wanted it.

"I think it would be a lot like Craig [Ludwig] did last year," Carbonneau said of a position that focused primarily on scouting. "You know, about 10 or 12 days a month and work it out from there. It would be a good transition situation. I mean, this game has been my life for the last 20 years, and it might be nice to step back and get some time off and some perspective."

That might be difficult for Carbonneau. The Montreal Canadiens have made no secret that they would like him to join their management team. And it's likely he'll get calls from other teams, as well.

"Even though I've known about this for a while, the next few months will still be pretty hectic," he said. "So I'm taking it slowly."

Carbonneau ends his career with 1,318 regular-season games played, 260 goals, 403 assists and 663 points. He was a member of three Stanley Cup champions (Montreal 1986, Montreal 1993 and Dallas 1999). He also twice made it to the Stanley Cup Finals on losing teams (Montreal 1989 and Dallas 2000).

Carbonneau is a three-time winner of the Selke Trophy, given to the top defensive forward in the NHL, and twice was runner-up for the award. Carbonneau also was a finalist for the Masterton Trophy (for perseverance and dedication to hockey) last season.

Carbonneau finished his career with 231 playoff games, second all-time to Mark Messier at 236. And it was game 231 that reinforced to Carbonneau how much a part of Dallas he had become.

"My five years there were awesome," he said. "To come out of St. Louis [in 1995] and have so many people think I was through was horrible. But Bob brought me in and gave me a chance, and everything just went together.

"Most of my career was in Montreal, and I will always have special memories here," he said. "But Dallas was something special, too."