The Anaheim Ducks are honouring their franchise's all-time leading scorer, Ryan Getzlaf, by retiring his jersey in the 2026-27 NHL season.
One of the Anaheim Ducks' legends is being immortalized in the 2026-27 NHL season.
The Ducks announced that Ryan Getzlaf will have his No. 15 retired into the rafters of the Honda Center. Getzlaf played all 17 seasons of his NHL career in Anaheim and was captain of the franchise for 12 of them.
Getzlaf becomes just the fourth player in Ducks history to have their number retired. He follows Scott Niedermayer (No. 27), Paul Kariya (No. 9), and Teemu Selanne (No. 8).
He found out about this honor when he received a call from Henry and Susan Samueli, the co-owners of the franchise.
"Oh awesome!" Getzlaf reacted through the phone. "Thank you guys, I appreciate it very much. That's a tremendous honor, to go up there with those three guys."
The Ducks will pull Getzlaf's No. 15 up to the rafters on Saturday, Jan. 30 of this upcoming season when Anaheim host the Nashville Predators. Two days before Getzlaf's number goes up to the rafters of the Honda Center, the Ducks will celebrate the team's 20th anniversary of that 2006-07 Stanley Cup triumph.
"My family and I are so grateful to the Samuelis and the Ducks organization for this incredible honor," Getzlaf said in a statement released by the team. "None of this would be possible without all the amazing teammates, coaches and support staff I had in my career. I thank them all and can't wait to celebrate in front of our great fans in January."
In Getzlaf's 17 years with the organization, after being drafted 19th overall by Anaheim in 2003, he played 1,157 regular-season games, scoring 282 goals and 1,019 points. He has a pretty safe argument as the greatest Duck of all time, leading the franchise in games played, assists, and points, and is the only player to score 1,000 points for Anaheim.
“Ryan Getzlaf’s impact on the Ducks will be felt for generations to come,” the Samuelis said. “While no player in club history played more games or scored more points, it’s his leadership, championship DNA and community contributions we will remember most.
"He’s a legacy player who rightfully will have his jersey hung alongside Teemu Selanne, Paul Kariya and Scott Niedermayer at Honda Center.”
With all those milestones under his name, don't forget the Ducks hoisted the Stanley Cup in 2006-07. Overall, Getzlaf has featured in 125 playoff games and scored 120 points, both of which are also franchise records.
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