After four years in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) with the Sarnia Sting and Windsor Spitfires, Brent Sullivan is retiring from hockey.
Despite committing to the Carleton Ravens this past summer, Sullivan will hang up the skates before ever getting the chance to play for Carleton’s squad.
“I had every intention to play this year, and the next several years for the Carleton Ravens and for coach Marty Johnston,” Sullivan said in an email. “Not until the day I was told to stop had I considered it. It was a heartbreaking day and a very emotional decision as well.”
Sullivan explained that a recurring injury is the reason he’s stepping aside from the sport.
“When I was 16, I took a crosscheck in the back and a disc shifted,” Sullivan said. “I was out for about three months without physical activity. I was told if it wasn’t treated properly with rehab I wouldn’t be able to bend over by the time I’m 30.”
Despite his best efforts to keep playing, the injury lingered and made hockey a struggle for Sullivan and a concern for his doctors.
“I’ve done rehab for four years now and it hasn’t improved,” he said. “And this summer it took a turn for the worse. [The doctors] said as long as I keep crashing into people and boards, it won’t get better.”
“He’s a good kid, a good player when he played in the OHL for a few years,” said fifth-year defenceman Justin Caruana. “It’s obviously going to hurt a bit, but we’ve got to move on.”
“I think it certainly hurts our depth,” Johnston said. “[Sullivan] had a high-end shot in terms of offensive ability, and he’s a big guy so he had the presence.”
Sullivan ended his career having played 126 games in the OHL, scoring 34 points and racking up 129 penalty minutes.
“I had the opportunity to play in the best junior league in the world for four years, and managed to be an assistant captain and recognized as a great leader for two seasons,” said Sullivan, whose team made it to the playoffs in his first two seasons.
Despite the loss, Johnston said he remains cautiously optimistic about the team’s chances this season.
“I think we’ll see by Christmas time whether our guys are good enough to compete with the best in the [Ontario University Athletics],” Johnston said. “But I certainly feel like we still have really high-quality defencemen.”
Sullivan will not be leaving the world of organized hockey altogether.
Shortly after he hung up the skates, the Carp, Ont. native was offered a job as coach of the Sarnia Legionnaires of the Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League — a job he said he was quick to accept.
“It’s a rare opportunity to be able to coach Junior A at 21,” Sullivan said. “I’m honoured to have the Legionnaires association recognize me as a leader and mentor, and look forward to my future career as a coach in the game.”
“It’s always a big jump, going from player to coach, but I think he’ll have a lot to offer the players,” Johnston said. “It’s good that he can stay in the game and not be totally away from it,” added Caruana.
