Pascal Dupuis hangs 'em up

DENVER – It was a sad and emotional day for the Penguins, from the front office to the players on the ice. Pascal Dupuis retired at age 36 because of his blood clotting history. You’ve probably read that here already.

He seemed to be at peace with the decision for the most part, clearly putting his future health and family in front of his love for the game.

His teammates also seemed somewhat relieved they don’t have to worry about his health anymore, though it was very apparent they will miss their teammate a ton.

Notes and Quotes

*Dupuis can be placed on long term injured reserve because he is forced to stop playing because of medical reasons. 

*Lost a bit in today’s Dupuis news: Kris Letang practiced for the club, after missing the last two games with an undisclosed lingering injury. He also took contact, and could be cleared for tomorrow night’s game against the Avalanche. 

*Daniel Sprong will get in the lineup tomorrow night after being a healthy scratch for the last eight games.

Here are some EXTRA quotes that didn’t make tomorrow’s story:

GM Jim Rutherford:

“It’s difficult. You’re not going to find a much more determined man than he is, who bring what he brings to the team. I’m sure we’ll figure out something in the future, that he’ll still have an impact here.”

Goalie Marc-Andre Fleury:

“It’s something we’ve talked about a little bit in the past few days, week or so. At first it’s always surprising. We’re aware of his condition. It’s tough. I think he’s feeling good about it. I think he’s OK with it now. It’s got to be a tough decision to make for sure. I’m glad he went out on his terms, he played until he wanted to. He’s still fairly healthy now, so that’s the main thing.”

Coach Mike Johnston:

“Guys like him are real glue guys to the team. When you don’t have them in your lineup you miss them a lot. So oftentimes you talk about their character. For a player, that’s a great complement. Certainly as hockey player, I know him back from Minnesota…I’ve seen him play a lot of different roles over the years. Come to Pittsburgh and contribute the way he did as a hockey player and contribute the way he has as a person is phenomenal for him.”

Winger Chris Kunitz:

“He’s that smiley, joking, fun guy to be around every single day. It doesn't matter what’s going on, if it’s personal life or bad days at the rink. He’s a guy you can always lean on that’s going to make the environment a lot easier, but also a guy who’s going to go out there and work every single time and try to be the best player he is. It’s a huge loss in the locker room, but that’s something we’ll have to figure out here going forward.”