It happened fast. One minute, Justin Schultz is the high-profile free agent defenseman everyone thinks will eventually land a depth spot on a contender. The next, he's signing a deal in Switzerland. Then, just eight games into his stint with HC Lugano, the news breaks: he’s done. Justin Schultz retirement became official on December 13, 2024, catching a lot of the hockey world off guard.
Honestly, it wasn't the ending most expected for a guy who once had every GM in the league begging for his signature.
He didn't wait for a mid-season NHL injury to open a door. He didn't grind it out in the AHL. He just decided, for personal reasons, that it was time to go home to Canada. After 745 NHL games and two Stanley Cup rings, he hung them up. It was a career that mirrored the modern NHL's evolution—a puck-moving, power-play specialist who found his greatest glory when paired with the right system.
The Wild Beginning: The "Schultz Sweepstakes"
You’ve got to remember how this all started. It was 2012. Schultz was a superstar at the University of Wisconsin. He was drafted by the Anaheim Ducks in 2008, but he did something almost unheard of at the time: he used a loophole in the Collective Bargaining Agreement to avoid signing with them.
He became a free agent. Every single team wanted him.
He eventually chose the Edmonton Oilers. At the time, Edmonton was "City of Champions" in theory but a basement-dweller in reality. They had Taylor Hall, Jordan Eberle, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. Schultz was supposed to be the final piece of the puzzle—the Bobby Orr of the new generation.
It didn't work. Not even close.
The pressure was immense. Edmonton fans are knowledgeable, but they’re also demanding. Schultz was asked to play 25 minutes a night and carry a defensive corps that just wasn't very good. His confidence cratered. By the time 2016 rolled around, he was the primary scapegoat for the Oilers' failures. He was a minus-22 in just 45 games that season. People called him "soft." They said he couldn't play defense.
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Then came the trade that changed everything.
Pittsburgh and the Redemption Arc
On February 27, 2016, the Penguins sent a third-round pick to Edmonton for Schultz. It was a "change of scenery" trade in its purest form.
In Pittsburgh, Schultz didn't have to be "The Man." He had Kris Letang in front of him. He had Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin to take the pressure off. Coach Mike Sullivan and assistant Jacques Martin simplified his game. Basically, they told him: "Just skate and move the puck."
It worked like a charm.
Schultz became an integral part of the back-to-back championships in 2016 and 2017. When Letang went down with a neck injury during the 2017 run, Schultz stepped up into the top-pairing role. He put up 13 points in 21 playoff games that year.
- 2016-17 Regular Season: 51 points in 78 games.
- Plus/Minus: A staggering +27.
- The Result: A 10th-place finish in Norris Trophy voting.
He had gone from being run out of Edmonton to being a top-tier NHL defenseman in less than 12 months. That stretch in Pittsburgh was easily the peak of his career. He was smooth. He was confident. He was exactly the player everyone thought he’d be back in 2012.
The Final Chapters: Washington and Seattle
After Pittsburgh, Schultz moved on to the Washington Capitals. He signed a two-year, $8 million deal in 2020. He was solid there—nothing flashy, but a reliable veteran presence who could still quarterback a second power-play unit.
Then came the Seattle Kraken.
Joining a second-year franchise is always a gamble, but Schultz fit in well. In his first year with the Kraken (2022-23), he helped them reach the playoffs for the first time. He actually recorded 34 points that year, which was his highest total since that magic 2016-17 season in Pittsburgh.
But the 2023-24 season was tougher. His ice time dropped to a career-low 16:28 per game. His plus-minus plummeted to -23. The NHL is a young man's league, and at 34, the speed was starting to catch up.
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When the summer of 2024 arrived and no NHL contract materialized, he took a chance on Europe. HC Lugano signed him in late October. He put up six assists in eight games—showing he still had the vision—but clearly, his heart wasn't in it.
Justin Schultz Retirement: Looking at the Numbers
When you look back at his 12-season career, the stats tell a story of a player who excelled when the environment was right.
- 745 Games Played: A massive milestone for any pro.
- 324 Career Points: 71 goals and 253 assists.
- 17 Game-Winning Goals: Nearly a quarter of his goals were winners.
- 2 Stanley Cups: The ultimate validation.
He wasn't a physical bruiser. He wasn't a "shutdown" guy in the traditional sense. But if you needed a clean breakout pass or a guy to walk the blue line on the power play, he was your man.
He retires as one of the most successful college free agents in history. While the "Schultz Sweepstakes" might have set impossible expectations early on, he eventually lived up to the hype in his own way.
What’s Next for the Two-Time Champ?
Schultz mentioned "personal reasons" and a desire to return to Canada. He’s from Kelowna, British Columbia. It’s a beautiful part of the world, and after over a decade of the NHL grind, nobody can blame him for wanting to enjoy the fruits of his labor.
If you’re a hockey fan, here is how you should remember Justin Schultz:
- The Resilience: He survived being the most hated man in Edmonton and rebuilt his career from scratch.
- The Skill: One of the smoothest skaters of his era when he was in his prime.
- The Impact: The Penguins don't win that 2017 Cup without him filling in for Letang.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Collectors:
If you're a memorabilia collector, keep an eye on Justin Schultz Penguins-era signed items. His role in those back-to-back Cups makes his gear more valuable to Pittsburgh fans than his Edmonton or Seattle stuff. For those following the Kraken or Penguins, his departure marks the end of an era of highly mobile, offense-first defensemen who paved the way for the current stars like Cale Makar or Quinn Hughes.
He wasn't a Hall of Famer, but he was a winner. And in the NHL, that’s all that really matters.