Veteran NHL forward Jeff Carter has retired from professional hockey after 19 seasons.

“This was it,” the 39-year-old said from the visitors room at UBS Arena after the Penguins’ 5-4 loss to the Islanders on April 17. “I kind of knew coming in at the start here that this would probably be it, and then it went on, and it was time. It was a lot of fun. A lot of fun.”

The two-time Stanley Cup champion has spent the past 3+ seasons with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Carter, who is a potential future Hall of Famer, finishes his career with 442 goals and 409 assists (851 points) in 1,321 games played.

He previously played 10+ seasons for the LA Kings and five seasons for the Philadelphia Flyers.

“Honestly, he's the same guy that I remember meeting when I was 16. Just a lot of poise, great guy in the room, brings it every single night,” Sidney Crosby said. “He’s had an amazing career. When you look at everything he's accomplished, he's basically won everything possible. He had a Calder Cup (in the AHL) early, just to get that out of the way [laughs]. So, he's got a pretty amazing resume and it’s been a lot of fun, and it's been an honor to play with him.”

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