William Salming begins the final chapter of his career

Salming: For sure. I have always performed well in meaningful games so to have a playoff game as a last game of my career as an Argonaut feels right even though we lost it to the Los Angeles Panthers 9-0. Experiencing playoff hockey with a new generation was fun and symbolic because we returned to the playoffs for the first time since season 72. The drought was way too long in my opinion, hah. So it was a good time to pass the torch forward like Podcalzone has said. It has been an honour to wear the Argonauts jersey in 1627 (1320+170+137) games when you add together regular season, playoffs and pre-season and score altogether 1204 points (378+826=1204). Even though my main task was always to offer solid and responsible two-way game and kill penalties.

I will probably write a longer retirement post when the time eventually comes but already now I said thank you for all the teammates, coaches and management people from past 20 seasons. I have only positive memories about all of them. Especially I said thank you to GM Tig for selecting me as a 44th overall pick in the entry draft. His decision to believe in me has been a huge motivation boost year after year. I gave my heart and soul for the franchise and I am glad it was rewarded twice on seasons 67 and 68.

For the fans I wrote a short letter. I hoped to be able to say goodbye to them too in one of the home games of the upcoming season. They have been simply sensational during my time there. In the end I wished all the best for the future for the Seattle. I am sure it will be fantastic in that organisation. Keep grinding and eventually good things will happen. Give yourself a chance to succeed that way. Vamos.

Interviewer: Okay, thanks for the detailed answer. But let's move on. What are your expectations for the upcoming season?

Salming: My expectations are that we are able to compete about playoffs spot even though our division will be a tough one and we lost some key players on the offseason. But it is a chance for others to step up and take a bigger role. If you never get a chance, you can't never succeed. The general manager of the Vegas Golden Knights, Kelly McCrimmon, said in the last month that it is unbelievable what people can do they get a chance. In my opinion the ethic should always be to play for the win and not to tank. Because tanking purposely can damage the culture in the organization. Okay, if we are last in the standings after trying our best we can accept it but tanking only to get a better draft pick is not the right choice in my opinion. It is vital to keep a good atmosphere in the organization also during "bad" and tough years. It will help in the future when is time to try to push towards Challenge Cups again. We don't want to destroy the magical and mythical winning culture that has been created to this organization during previous years. That was my message also in the Seattle during the rebuilding process.

We have still 8-9 players who are in the good age and can lead the team well. For example Trevor Lahey, Jani Mänty and Activity Check are elite forwards and in the back end Luka Nogoalov is a solid net minder. I guess personally my role will be pretty similar than it was in the Seattle during last seasons. I hope to contribute secondary scoring from the bottom lines and offer two-way game in the PK. Maybe I get some occasional PP shifts too, you never know what the coaches decide and who are the hot players when the season begins. I am excited to take first strides at the FirstOntario Centre and its shining ice when the pre-season finally begins this week. I have heard only good things about the atmosphere so hopefully there are many fans in the stands also in those matches. I also like the color scheme of the jerseys here in Hamilton and can't wait to wear the uniform.

Interviewer: Before we are ending your annual media day, I have one more question. Team Finland won the silver medal in the World Championships and you a former captain. Did you watch the gold medal game and what are your thoughts about that?

Salming: For sure. I love international hockey and a lion jersey. Boys played well and maybe next year they return the gold medal to Finland. The round robin was a roller coaster but they played well enough in the end and then experience was a key thing in the playoffs even though Canada beat them in the final. Many guys had a good tournament and future is bright.