According to the Associated Press on Monday, New Jersey Devils center Travis Zajac retired from the National Hockey League at age 36. Zajac was in fact traded to the New York Islanders at the NHL trade deadline on April 7, and then signed a one-day contract with New Jersey this week to retire as a member of the Devils organization.
Zajac had eight goals and 12 assists for 20 points in 46 regular season games last season. He also had six penalty minutes, two game-winning goals, one power-play point, 50 shots on goal, 310 faceoff wins, 22 blocked shots, 51 hits, 25 takeaways, and 14 giveaways. Zajac’s power-play point last season came on a goal by Jesper Bratt in a 5-3 Devils loss to the Buffalo Sabres on April 6, one day before being traded to the Islanders. Zajac also scored game-winning goals for the Devils in a 3-2 Devils win over the Pittsburgh Penguins on March 18, and in a 4-3 Devils win over the Philadelphia Flyers on March 23.
In his career, Zajac had 203 goals and 349 assists for 552 points in 1037 games from 2007 to 2021. He was a -20 with 344 penalty minutes, 148 power-play points, 22 shorthanded points, 24 game-winning goals, and 1811 shots on goal.
Zajac also had two NHL career hat tricks. They came in a 6-3 Devils win over the Florida Panthers on March 31, 2014, and in a 4-3 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks on December 1, 2016. In the playoffs, Zajac played 71 postseason games for the Devils and had 12 goals and 18 assists for 30 points.
