Defenseman Andy Greene signed a one-day contract with the Devils on Wednesday, officially retiring as a member of the organization where he spent most of his 16-year NHL career.
“In January of 2007, I fulfilled my dream and played my first NHL game. As I sit here 16 years later, it still seems surreal that I was one of the fortunate ones who got to do what I had dreamed of when I was five years old,” Greene said in a statement released by the Devils. "I want to thank the New Jersey Devils organization, for giving me my first day and last day in the NHL. You have treated not only me, but more importantly my family, with nothing but love and respect and I will be forever grateful for that. Thank you also to the New York Islanders organization for the past two and a half years."
Greene, 39, signed as an undrafted free agent in 2006 and ended up playing 1,057 NHL games, with 52 goals, 212 assists, and 277 penalty minutes. He also had nine points in 50 playoff games with the Devils and was named the team’s eleventh captain in October 2015.
The Devils dealt Greene to the Islanders in February 2020, and Greene ended up re-signing with the Isles for two more seasons, playing 134 regular-season games and 40 playoff games on Long Island.
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"To start with him and then be able to end on the same team with him, I thought that was pretty neat," Zach Parise, who played with Greene in both Newark and Belmont, told Islanders.com after hearing of Greene’s retirement. "He had such a great, underrated career and for him to kind of play 1000 games and be a captain in the league, it was such a special honor for him. You can't say enough about the guy."
The Devils will honor Greene prior to their home opener on Saturday, where he and his family will drop the ceremonial first puck, and he will likely get one last ovation from the Jersey faithful.
"Andy was a bedrock for New Jersey during his 14 years and developed into an exceptional leader and what it meant to be a Devil," said Tom Fitzgerald, Devils Executive Vice President and General Manager, in a team statement. "He was a consummate professional when times were hard and a representation to his teammates in the locker room. It's only right that he announces his retirement from the National Hockey League as a member of the Devils and we thank him for all that he's done on and off the ice for the organization.”
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