Former NHLer, Olympian Kevin Poulin retires from hockey

Goaltender Kevin Poulin has announced his retirement from pro hockey after a 13-year career.

“After 13 years playing pro hockey all over the world and spending the last two years playing here at home, I am proud to announce my retirement,” Poulin said in an Instagram post. “I would like to thank my family, teammates, coaches, fans and everyone who was involved in the making. My younger self would be proud of my career and for accomplishing so many dreams of mine.

“I’m ready to leave the game behind and know it’s not gonna be easy but I will always be grateful for the memories, opportunities and connections it gave me and for making me a better man.”

Poulin will be most remembered for leading Canada to bronze at the 2018 Olympics, the first tournament not to feature NHLers since the 1990s. He posted a 3-1-0 record in 2018, with the lone loss coming in a tightly contested semifinal game against Germany.

Earlier that same season, he helped lead Canada to a Spengler Cup championship while earning a spot on the tournament all-star team. Drafted 126th overall by the New York Islanders in 2008, Poulin made his NHL debut during the 2010-11 season. He registered a 4-2-1 record with a .924 save percentage while establishing himself as a solid AHL goaltender.

Poulin played a career-best 28 NHL games during the 2013-14 season and would bounce around the NHL and AHL for a couple of years. He eventually elected to embark on a pro career in Europe for a few seasons before returning back to the AHL for a few games in 2019-20. He spent the past two years with the Montreal Canadiens’ AHL affiliate, the Laval Rocket, where he served as a mentor for Cayden Primeau.

The 33-year-old had an 18-25-3 record in 50 NHL regular season games, and also saw relief action in two playoff games. While he didn’t win many personal awards, Poulin did help Bjorkloven finish second in the Allsvenskan championship in 2021.