Former Buffalo Sabres Captain Daniel Briere Retires

Former Buffalo Sabres captain Daniel Briere has announced his retirement from the NHL after 17 seasons. The announcement came in a column published Monday in a French-language newspaper out of Ottawa, with a formal announcement to be made Tuesday in Philadelphia.

With the announcement ends an NHL career that saw Briere appear in 1,097 games between 1997 and 2015. He notched 812 total points in that time, including 360 goals and 452 assists. He also racked up 842 penalty minutes.

Briere began his NHL career with the Phoenix Coyotes, the team that drafted him 24th overall in the 1996 NHL Entry Draft. He spent six seasons as part of the Coyotes organization, playing at both the NHL and AHL levels (with the Springfield Falcons).

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Over those years, he’d appear in 264 games with the Coyotes, notching 149 points in that time (72-77). He also appeared in 176 games with the Falcons, notching 89 goals and 132 assists.

Then, on March 10, 2003, the Buffalo Sabres acquired Briere at the trade deadline. Coming with Briere to Buffalo was a third-round draft pick in the 2004 Entry Draft (that would turn into Andrej Sekera). Chris Gratton and a fourth-round pick in 2004 would head back to Phoenix in exchange.

Briere would appear in his first game with the Buffalo Sabres two short days later, against the Carolina Hurricanes. He’d skate 19 shifts and play a total of 16:28, registering two shots and two penalty minutes on the evening.

In total at the end of that season, Briere appeared in 14 games with the Buffalo Sabres. He notched points in eight of those games, including goals in seven.

The 2003-2004 season would be Briere’s first full season with the Buffalo Sabres. He notched 28 goals and a career-high 37 assists for 65 points in 82 games – another career-high. He’d register at least a point in 44 of 82 games, with 17 multi-point games. Briere was also named captain of the Buffalo Sabres for the month of February 2004, when the team rotated the captaincy monthly.

Overall, Briere’s offensive game took off during his time with the Buffalo Sabres.

In an injury-shortened 2005-2006 season, Briere averaged more than a point per game, registering 58 points (25-33) in just 48 games during the regular season.

He continued his winning ways in the postseason, once again averaging over a point per game with 19 points in 18 games as the Buffalo Sabres made it to the Eastern Conference Finals.

Briere was named a co-captain of the Buffalo Sabres, joining Chris Drury in sharing the leadership honors from 2005 until 2007.

The 2006-2007 season would end up being Briere’s last with the Buffalo Sabres – and boy, was it a good one. He averaged 1.17 points/game, registering a career-high 95 points in just 81 games. He hit a career-high in assists (63) and matched his career-best 32 goals during the regular season.

In the playoffs, Briere averaged nearly a point per game, notching 15 points in 16 games played.

Free agency hit that summer, and Briere signed on with the Philadelphia Flyers. He’d go on to spend six seasons with the Philadelphia organization, before moving on to play with the Montreal Canadiens for the 2013-14 season.

This past season – Briere’s last in the NHL – would be spent with the Colorado Avalanche. He notched 12 points (8-4) in 57 games with the Avs.

Now, he hangs up the skates, but it’s a great time to look back – what’s your favorite memory of Briere during his time with the Buffalo Sabres?

Perhaps it’s this goal – a second-overtime tally to give the Buffalo Sabres the win over the Flyers in game one of the 2006 Eastern Conference Quarterfinals.

… or maybe it’s this game-six overtime winner to force a game seven against the Carolina Hurricanes.

How about this carefully-worded postgame interview the night of the Buffalo Sabres vs. Ottawa Senators brawl?

Regardless of what your favorite moment of Briere’s was, there’s no denying his talent and how much skill he showed during his time with the Buffalo Sabres. Share your favorite Briere memories in the comments below!

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