Leafs' AGM Hayley Wickenheiser speaks about 23-year-old prospect's forced retirement
Yesterday, Leafs prospect Ian Scott announced his retirement from professional hockey at the young age of 23. A fourth round pick of the Leafs in the 2017 draft, he looked like a promising, long-term option between the pipes for the Leafs. In his final year of junior with the Prince Albert Raiders of the WHL, Scott won goaltender of the year after posting a 38-8-2 record with a .932 save percentage. Unfortunately, injury after injury caught up to him. Most recently, Scott underwent hip surgery, which limited him to just 7 games last season between the AHL and ECHL.
Leafs' Assistant General Manager Hayley Wickenheiser spoke following the final scrimmage of the Leafs' development camp today saying, "I feel a lot for Ian. I had a chance to be around him a lot in the last few years. It's never easy to see a player that young, he has dealt with significant hip issues, to have to retire and to transition. He's going to land on his feet."
It truly sucks seeing such a young player have to retire from the game he loves due to injury. Particularly one with such promise. The good news is that he still has his whole life ahead of him to land on his feet and seeing him involved in hockey in some way would not be surprising. The Leafs organization is known for keeping players around in office roles once they retire to help them transition into life after hockey and it would not come as a shock to see Scott remain with the organization in some capacity while he figures out where he wants his life to take him.
