Ansar Khan is reporting that Kirk Maltby has decided to retire and will officially announce his decision at 5:30 p.m. today. Maltby had been contemplating retirement after not making the Red Wings and being assigned to Grand Rapids. Rather than continue his playing career in the AHL, Maltby has decided to hang up the skates.
Maltby entered the NHL in the early 90s and joined the Red Wings in the 1995-96 season after Edmonton traded him. He went on to spend the next 13 seasons with the Red Wings, most notably as a member of the Grind Line with Kris Draper and Darren McCarty.
During his career, Maltby helped the Red Wings win four Stanley Cup titles (1997, 1998, 2002 and 2008). He played in more than 1,000 games in 17 years in the league and is one of the beloved Wings from the last two decades.
Ken Holland has hinted that Maltby has a job as a scout available to him upon retirement, so it will be interesting to see if he does in fact take it. I'm sure we will find out more during Maltby's announcement later today.