Predators captain Mike Fisher retires after 17 seasons

Nashville Predators captain Mike Fisher announced his retirement in an article published in The Tennessean on Thursday morning.

Fisher ranks fourth in franchise history with 109 goals and leaves the organization ranked in the top 10 in power-play goals, game-winners, and goals per game.

Here's an excerpt from Fisher's piece:

This is the hardest decision I’ve ever had to make, but I know I’ve made the right one. I’ve decided to retire from the NHL.

I kept praying for peace about the next step in my life. A peace that said this is God’s will for your future. A peace that said whether or not this was the right time to walk away.

I don’t believe it came in a single instance or some aha moment, but as time passed, I gradually became certain that it was right for me to retire. I believe God gave me the ability to play hockey, and I was helped by dozens of individuals along the way, so it’s not just up to me on when it’s time to say goodbye.

The 37-year-old spent parts of seven seasons with the Predators after being traded to Nashville by the Ottawa Senators for a pair of draft picks in 2011.

A second-round pick by the Sens in 1998, Fisher leaves having played 1,088 regular-season games, in which he scored 276 goals and 585 points. He added 23 goals and 51 points in 134 playoff games.

And he'll be rooting for the Preds in retirement.

"I believe that this team, that this city, is going to win a championship, and I’m going to be the biggest fan," Fisher wrote. "No one will be happier than I will be to see it happen, because, these fans, they deserve it."