Former Toronto Maple Leafs winger Tyler Ennis has decided to hang up his skates for good to conclude a 13-year NHL career.
Tyler Ennis has retired from professional hockey, he announced on Instagram.
A 2008 1st round pick, the 5’9 (!!!) forward played in 700 NHL games from 2009-2022 with #Sabres, #mnwild, #LeafsForever, #Sens, and #Oilers, tallying 144G, 202A, 346P in those 700 games. pic.twitter.com/SqnRmbjRG6
— NHL News (@PuckReportNHL) September 18, 2024
Originally selected 26th overall by the Sabres in 2008, the 5’9″ and 160-pound forward spent most of his playing days in Buffalo but he also got to play for the Wild, Senators, Oilers, and Leafs.
Ennis made his first appearance in the NHL during the 2009-10 season where he racked up nine points (three goals and six assists) in 10 games. The vast majority of that year was spent with the AHL’s Portland Pirates where he finished second on the team in scoring with 65 points (23 goals and 42 assists) in 69 games. He cracked the Sabres roster for good the following season and went on to have a career year in 2010-11 with 49 points (20 goals and 29 assists) in 82 games which was good enough for fourth on the Sabres in scoring.
He would remain productive in Buffalo for the next few years despite the team surrounding him falling down the standings, which included two other 20-goal seasons. Things would hit a snag beginning in the 2015-16 campaign as numerous injuries limited Ennis’ availability throughout the years and also declined his effectiveness. It started with a lower-body injury in the fall of 2015 followed by multiple concussions and requiring a sports hernia surgery. His last two years in Buffalo saw him ammas only 11 and 13 points respectively in a combined 74 games played.
Those mounting injuries and sharp dropoff resulted in him being shipped to the Wild along with Marcus Foligno in exchange for Jason Pominville and Marco Scandella. He spent one season in Minnesota where he was mostly healthy and saw a slight improvement in his offensive production. It wasn’t enough to keep him around and he thus departed in free agency where he was nabbed by the Leafs.
He provided some immediate insurance during a period where William Nylander was not available for the first two months due to a contract dispute with Kyle Dubas. Apart from a broken ankle that sidelined him for nearly two months, Ennis made the most of this opportunity with 12 goals which was the first time he surpassed double digits in four seasons. Three of them came against the Flames on March 4, 2019 for his first career hat trick.
Along with the 12 goals, Ennis finished the year with six assists and 18 points while also chipping in two assists in five playoff games. That strong season in Toronto ended up making him a hot commodity around the league where he signed a one-year deal with the Senators. This resulted in a resurgent campaign split between Ottawa and Edmonton, where he produced a combined 37 points (14 goals and 19 assists) in 70 games before the season was halted by COVID-19.
Ennis then struggled once again as a broken leg he suffered during the bubble playoffs hampered his production the following year. He would return to Ottawa in 2021-22 where he had another decent season offensively but it wasn’t enough to keep him in North America as he opted to continue his career in Europe. He spent a year with Bern SC of the Swiss National League and then played seven games last season with the Mannheim Eagles of the DEL. A serious neck injury he sustained on November 21st prematurely ended his season and resulted in him deciding to retire from professional hockey, which was confirmed yesterday.
In total, Ennis appeared in exactly 700 NHL games played where he recorded 346 points (144 goals and 202 assists) in that span.
