Stanley Cup champion Kyle Clifford retires after 13-year NHL career
Longtime left winger Kyle Clifford has called it a career, according to a report from John Hoven of SiriusXM NHL Network Radio on Wednesday.
Well, it's the end of an era… And this one hits a little harder than many others.
Kyle Clifford's playing career has come to an end. He's ready (and excited) for the next chapter, as he's accepted a role in player development with the Maple Leafs.
Two Stanley Cups, 750+ NHL… pic.twitter.com/iQtvhygUeO
Clifford had been without an AHL contract after the conclusion of the 2024-25 season with the Toronto Maple Leafs‘ minor league affiliate, the Toronto Marlies, and it appears that after some consideration, he’s elected to retire.
According to the report from Hoven, Clifford will still be with the Maple Leafs organization, as he has accepted a role in player development. What his specific role and responsibilities with the Maple Leafs will be is unknown, but he joins a department with former NHLers Nik Antropov, Jake Muzzin and Patrick O’Sullivan.
Clifford’s final season of pro hockey sees him get into just 17 games with the Marlies, where he had just four goals and four assists for eight points.
Clifford retires after 13 seasons in the NHL with the Los Angeles Kings, the Maple Leafs and the St. Louis Blues. Over the course of 753 regular season games, he managed 66 goals and 78 assists for 144 points in his career, along with four goals and 12 assists for 16 points in 65 playoff games, capturing two Stanley Cups in 2012 and 2014 with the Kings.
Clifford was a second-round pick for the Kings, drafted 35th overall in the 2009 NHL Draft. He needed just one more season in the OHL with the Barrie Colts and one playoff stint with the Manchester Monarchs in the AHL before becoming a full-time NHLer in 2010-11 with the Kings. He went on to play parts of 10 seasons in Los Angeles, including their two Cup-winning seasons in 2012 and 2014.
Clifford was then dealt to the Maple Leafs at the 2020 trade deadline along with goaltender Jack Campbell, and he played out the rest of the season before he left for free agency to sign with the Blues. He spent parts of two seasons in St. Louis before he was traded back to Toronto for future considerations early on in the 2021-22 season. After two seasons split between the NHL and AHL, he spent the final two seasons in his professional career entirely in the AHL.