Big news this morning. Mike Fisher announced, via a personal essay in The Tennessean, that he’s retiring from NHL hockey after 17 years playing first for the Ottawa Senators, and then the Nashville Predators. In his last year for the preds, Fisher served as Captain, helping to lead the team to the Stanley Cup finals.
The news is relevant to us because Fisher is married to American Idol season 4 winner and country superstar, Carrie Underwood. In his piece for the Tennessean, Fisher notes that leaving the game is especially difficult, after the Predators came so close to clinching the title. But, he does so with hope and knowing that “endings are always tough,” but there will be “new opportunities and new things to be excited for, too.”
Closing a chapter like this – one that’s lasted 17 years – makes me think about the support I’ve received my whole life from my family, friends, even people I’ve never met that have prayed for me throughout my career. It’s impossible to thank every one of them, but I’ll try. I hope this letter shows some kind of gratitude to them, to the Ottawa Senators, to David Poile, who brought me to Nashville and put his faith in me, to the entire Nashville Predators organization, teammates, owners, coaches and trainers; the way they’ve treated me has always been with the utmost kindness.
I approached this season with the mindset that it could be my last, and now that it’s past, I’m looking forward to a future that includes a lot more time with my family. Things change when you have kids and you have a family. They’ve supported me without question, and now it’s my turn to return the favor.
After Fisher dropped the news, Carrie posted a heartfelt message on her Instagram account. “Captain @mfisher1212 I sure am going to miss watching you play and cheering you on with the rest of Smashville,” Carrie wrote, “but I so look forward to seeing what God has in store for you in this next chapter of your life. You’ve given your teammates and the game your all for so many years…you’ve worked so hard and made us all so proud!”
Carrie goes on to say how she and their son Isaiah “love you so much” and are excited to have him home “a lot more.” She ended the post with a message to fans, “We can’t wait to cheer on the @predsnhl WITH you in the stands! #ThankYouSmashville #PredsFansForLife”
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