Former NHL goalie Jaroslav Halak has announced his retirement from the NHL after 17 seasons. By the end of his career, Halak had played 581 games, including 295 wins, with seven different teams.
Where it all began
Halak was born in Bratislava, Slovakia, in 1985. He played with his hometown team, Bratislava Slovan, for one season before being drafted by the Montreal Canadians in the ninth round of the 2003 NHL draft. Being drafted in the ninth round of the NHL draft, all the odds were against Halak becoming a solidified NHLer.
After being drafted by the Canadians, Halak began his career in North America with the Lewiston MAINEiacs in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) where he played for one season, putting up a solid 24-17-4 record.