Joe Thornton officially retires

Let’s take a moment to celebrate Joe Thornton, who finally said the words out loud. Saturday night, the San Jose Sharks released the official Joe Thornton retirement video and it was delivered as only Jumbo could. Shirtless but very much bearded, Thornton said an official farewell to the NHL but promised he would still be at the rink in San Jose.

🚨 Important Shirtless Jumbo Message 🚨 pic.twitter.com/ZQJxCSr8zm

— San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) October 28, 2023

Twitter Tributes to Joe Thornton

There were plenty of people online who congratulated Jumbo on his official retirement. Sharks’ television play-by-play announcer Randy Hahn said this:

From when you arrived in ‘05 ‘till you moved on, no player EVER impacted the @SanJoseSharks the way you did Thank you Joe Thornton! Know that we all loved the passionate way you played and the joyous time you had doing it. An absolute original and a Shark forever #joethornton

— Randy Hahn (@sharkvoice) October 29, 2023

Longtime NHL insider Pierre LeBrun had this to say:

Jumbo Joe Thornton officially announces his retirement like only he could, no shirt and all.
First ballot Hockey Hall of Famer to be sure.
What a career. And what a character ! https://t.co/VrP4Jd1Gji

— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) October 28, 2023

While former Sharks’ beat writer Mark Purdy paid his tribute as well:

Best hockey player I ever covered. Made me see the game differently because he saw the game like very few others. Hope he and his family are honored properly by the Sharks. https://t.co/lhY2hA9N2i

— Mark Purdy (@MercPurdy) October 29, 2023

The Sharks also added this tribute video to Thornton:

There's no one like you, Jumbo 💙

Congrats on a legendary career! pic.twitter.com/gAnoi8P8Kb

— San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) October 29, 2023

Thornton a first ballot Hockey Hall of Famer

Sometimes it’s easy to forget just how good Jumbo was because he made it look so easy. So let’s talk about where he stands in the hockey record books.

Thornton has played 1,714 career NHL games spread out between the Boston Bruins, San Jose Sharks, Toronto Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers. He is seventh on the list of all-time NHL games played, just 65 behind leader and good buddy Patrick Marleau.

Jumbo Joe officially calls it a career. What a run. 🫡 pic.twitter.com/epCNDxJuJc

— NHL (@NHL) October 28, 2023

He was not a prolific goal scorer but still ranks in the top 100 all-time in the NHL with 430. He’s eighty-first on the list.

As anyone who has watched Thornton play can attest, it was the assists that truly made him stand out. He had 1,109 career assists, good for seventh all-time. He’s ahead of Hall of Famers Adam Oates, Steve Yzerman and Gordie Howe on the list.

Totaled up, Thornton finished his career twelfth all-time in points with 1,539.

Then, of course, there’s the hardware.

• World Junior Championships Gold 1997
• Art Ross Trophy 2006
• Hart Memorial Trophy 2006
• Olympic Gold Medal 2010

Thornton, one of the all-time great Sharks

While the rest of the world will look at Thornton’s credentials to determine if he’s worthy of future accolades, he will always hold a special place in San Jose fans’ hearts because of the laughs he brought off the ice.

There was the infamous rooster trick that is now a league-wide term. There’s the time he told Doug Wilson to “shut his mouth.” There are the amazing commercial with beard brother Brent Burns.

And there’s Thornton and his good buddy Slappy.

Joe, you have brought great memories to fans of Sharks around the world. Thank you!

Please share your Thornton memories below!