After 15 seasons in the National Hockey League and two Stanley Cup championships with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Patric Hornqvist is hanging up the skates, he confirmed to Per Bjurman of Sportsblade on Wednesday.

The 36-year-old played out his final season in 2022-23 with the Florida Panthers, scoring three points in 22 games as the team reached the Stanley Cup Final before losing to the Vegas Golden Knights in five games.

“I've been in this bubble since I started to play as a kid, hockey has been a huge part of my life so of course it's a difficult decision to make,” Hornqvist said.

“It will be a big transition, but it feels good now, I'm looking forward to the rest of my life. It's the most important thing. I'm feeling fine now and hopefully I have many fine years ahead of me, and with my history of injuries I don't want to risk any future harm.”

The Swede last played on Dec. 3, when he suffered his second concussion in under a month. Despite injuries plaguing him late in his career, Hornqvist was extremely effective as a two-way player throughout most of his career.

He scored 264 goals and 543 points in 901 NHL games for the Nashville Predators, Penguins and Panthers. His 264 goals are tied with Nicklas Lidstrom, Thomas Steen and Kent Nilsson for 10th most by a Sweden-born player, per NHL.com.

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Hornqvist's claim to fame is scoring the game-winning goal in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final between his Penguins and the Predators in 2017. With under two minutes left in a 0-0 contest (the Pens led the series 3-2), he banked a goal off Pekka Rinne's back and in, which held up as Pittsburgh won the game and the series.

Overall, he scored 53 points in 106 Stanley Cup Playoff games, winning the Cup with Sidney Crosby in Pennsylvania twice and reaching the Final again with the Panthers last season.

A former last overall pick by the Predators in the 2005 NHL Draft, the Swede carved out an excellent career for himself in professional hockey, and confirmed he plans to remain close to the game in retirement.

“Foremost I'm most grateful and happy about all the great people I've got to know,” Patric Hornqvist explained. “Players, coaches, equipment managers…you name it. The world of hockey is full of great people, so if it's one thing that I'm going to miss it's the time in the locker room with the guys.”