Veteran defenceman Keith retires
Edmonton Oilers defenceman Duncan Keith is retiring.
Keith played 16 seasons for the Blackhawks before Chicago dealt him to Edmonton for blue liner Caleb Jones and a draft pick last summer.
The 38-year-old put up 21 points (one goal, 20 assists) and 22 penalty minutes in 64 regular-season appearances for the Oilers, then added a goal, four assists and five penalty minutes in 16 playoff games.
Keith, who played for the Penticton Vees and Kelowna Rockets,, won three Stanley Cups with the Blackhawks and was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as the post-season MVP in 2014.
He also won the Norris Trophy, awarded annually to the NHL's top defenceman, in 2010 and 2014.
Keith signed a mammoth 13-year contract with the Blackhawks in 2009. The deal carried an annual average value of US$5.5 million.
Keith was born in Winnipeg and played youth hockey in Fort Francis, Ont., before his family moved to British Columbia at age 15.
He played two seasons with Penticton of the BCHL before attending Michigan State University in 2001-02.
The Blackhawks selected him in the second round (No. 54) of the 2002 NHL Draft, and Keith played one more season split between Michigan State and Kelowna of the Western Hockey League before turning pro.
Keith played two seasons for Norfolk, then the American Hockey League affiliate of the Blackhawks, before making the NHL in 2005-06.
Over the next decade, he was part of a young core of talent that included forwards Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane, and longtime defence partner Brent Seabrook; together, they helped the Blackhawks go from a team that missed the Stanley Cup playoffs nine times in 10 seasons to one that won three championships in six seasons from 2009-10 to 2014-15.
Keith had a breakout season in 2009-10, finishing with 69 points (14 goals, 55 assists) to win the Norris Trophy as the NHL’s best defenceman. He then contributed 17 points (two goals, 15 assists) in 22 playoff games to help the Blackhawks end a Stanley Cup drought that dated to 1961.
Keith remained among the NHL’s best defencemen during the 2010s. He helped the Blackhawks win the Cup again in 2013, won the Norris Trophy for the second time in 201314, finishing with 61 points (six goals, 55 assists) and won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP in 2015, when the Blackhawks won the Cup for the third time in six seasons.
Keith has also had success internationally, helping Canada win the gold medal in hockey at the 2010 and 2014 Olympics.