Canes' Fast (neck) retires after missing season

Carolina Hurricanes guardant Jesper Fast is retiring aft missing this play with a cervix wounded sustained successful the 2023-24 regular-season finale.

Fast, 33, announced his determination Monday.

"I ne'er took for granted the privilege of playing successful the champion league successful the world," Fast said successful a connection issued by the team.

"I americium grateful for each of the teammates, coaches, unit and fans from the Rangers and Hurricanes who made my clip successful the NHL truthful special, and for my household for everything they did to assistance maine execute and unrecorded my dream. I'd besides similar to convey Nassjo HC and HV71, organizations that played a captious relation successful my improvement into an NHL player."

Fast hadn't played since April 2024 erstwhile Blue Jackets defenseman Erik Gudbranson cross-checked him from down into the boards. Carolina was headed to the playoffs and resting galore players successful a crippled that had nary bearing connected the standings.

"That's the portion that conscionable makes you sick, to beryllium honorable with you," manager Rod Brind'Amour said that night. "You're conscionable trying to get done the crippled without having that. I'm not definite wherever that's going to go."

Fast wore a cervix brace erstwhile helium spoke with reporters during end-of-year interviews astir a period later.

"It's decidedly 1 of the toughest periods of my career," Fast said aft the Hurricanes fell to the Rangers successful Round 2 of the playoffs.

The squad announced successful August that Fast had cervix country and would miss the 2024-25 season.

Fast archetypal signed with Carolina successful October 2020, past re-signed to a two-year, $4.8 cardinal hold successful July 2023.

He had six postseason goals during Carolina's tally to the 2023 Eastern Conference final, including an overtime victor successful Game 2 of the first-round bid against the New York Islanders and the bid clincher against the New Jersey Devils successful a five-game second-round series.

Fast played 703 vocation regular-season games successful the NHL with the Rangers and Hurricanes implicit 11 seasons, tallying 91 goals and 157 assists. He was a sixth-round draught prime by the Rangers successful 2010.