FRISCO, Texas — Former Dallas Stars defenseman John Klingberg announced his retirement from the NHL on Friday morning in a post from the NHL Players’ Association. Klingberg, 34, played 552 of his 700 career regular-season games with the Stars. He retires with 92 goals, 351 assists, and 443 points.
Following his eight seasons in Dallas, Klingberg played for the Anaheim Ducks, Minnesota Wild, Toronto Maple Leafs, Edmonton Oilers, and San Jose Sharks. He spent the 2025-26 season with San Jose. In 82 career playoff games, he had 9 goals, 34 assists, and 43 points.
John Klingberg’s Eight Seasons With The Dallas Stars
Dallas selected Klingberg in the fifth round, 131st overall, in the 2010 NHL Draft. He opened the 2014-15 season with the AHL’s Texas Stars and was recalled in November after recording 4 goals, 8 assists, and 12 points in 10 games.
Once in Dallas, he became the first defenseman in franchise history with 8 points in his first eight NHL games, according to The Associated Press. In 65 games as a rookie, he had 11 goals, 29 assists, and 40 points. He led NHL rookie defensemen in assists and points. All three totals were single-season Stars records for a rookie defenseman. Klingberg was named to the NHL All-Rookie Team and finished fifth in Calder Trophy voting.
On April 17, 2015, the Stars signed Klingberg to a seven-year, $29.75 million extension. The deal carried a $4.25 million cap hit and ran through the 2021-22 season. Klingberg said his agent told him Stars general manager Jim Nill wanted a long-term deal, in comments to the Stars’ website that NBC Sports published later in 2015.
“I was a little bit surprised,” Klingberg said. “I thought maybe a two-year or three-year deal, somewhere there. I talked to my agent, and he said Jim wanted to make a long-term deal, and I was really surprised. I was happy because I knew they were happy with how I played and wanted to sign me for a long time. It’s exciting when you know they trust you, and they think you can be a good player.”
In 2015-16, Klingberg had 10 goals, 48 assists, and 58 points in 76 games. He finished sixth in Norris Trophy voting that season. During the 2017-18 season, he played all 82 games and had 8 goals, 59 assists, and 67 points. He finished sixth in Norris Trophy voting again and played in the 2018 NHL All-Star Game.
On April 22, 2019, Klingberg scored 17:02 into overtime of Game 6 against the Nashville Predators at American Airlines Center. The 2-1 win closed out Dallas’ first-round series in six games. Alexander Radulov set up the goal with a cross-ice pass. Klingberg said the Stars treated Game 6 like a Game 7 because they did not want to go back to Nashville, The Associated Press reported.
“We had a 3-on-1, and I was looking to pass it again,” Klingberg said, according to the Stars’ website. “Then I saw their [defense] slide, so I tried to snap it low-blocker, and I was happy to see it go in.”
During the 2020 playoffs, the Stars reached the Stanley Cup Final and lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning in six games. Klingberg finished second on the team in postseason scoring with 4 goals, 17 assists, and 21 points in 26 games. In 59 playoff games with Dallas, he had 7 goals, 28 assists, and 35 points.
John Klingberg’s Five NHL Stops After Leaving The Dallas Stars
The extension expired after the 2021-22 season. Klingberg’s last games with Dallas came in the 2022 playoffs, when the Calgary Flames eliminated the Stars in seven games in the first round. In 552 regular-season games with the Stars, he had 71 goals, 303 assists, and 374 points.
That summer, Klingberg signed a one-year, $7 million contract with Anaheim. The Ducks traded him to Minnesota before the 2023 trade deadline. He played 50 games for Anaheim and 17 for the Wild that season.
In free agency in 2023, Klingberg signed a one-year, $4.15 million contract with Toronto. He had 5 assists in 14 games and did not play after Nov. 11, 2023. On Dec. 6, 2023, Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving told reporters Klingberg would have hip surgery that could sideline him up to six months. The operation was a double hip resurfacing procedure, according to The Dallas Morning News.
On Jan. 17, 2025, the Oilers signed Klingberg to a one-year contract. He had 1 goal, 3 assists, and 4 points in 11 regular-season games. In the playoffs, he had 1 goal, 3 assists, and 4 points in 19 games as Edmonton reached the Stanley Cup Final. The Oilers eliminated Dallas in five games in the Western Conference Final. Edmonton won Game 5, 6-3, at American Airlines Center on May 29, 2025.
San Jose signed Klingberg to a one-year, $4 million contract in July 2025. In 56 games with the Sharks in 2025-26, he had 10 goals, 17 assists, and 27 points. That contract expired at the end of the season.
The Stars open training camp Thursday, Sept. 17, at Comerica Center in Frisco. Dallas opens the preseason Saturday, Sept. 19, against the St. Louis Blues at Enterprise Center, with puck drop set for 6 p.m. CT.
