No Farewell Tour for Brendan Shanahan

UNIONDALE, N.Y. -- There won't be a final season tour for Brendan Shanahan. "I don't think I'd get any pre-game flowers from the other team," he said.

There won't be any premature announcements of retirement. "I don't think that's a good idea," said Shanahan with a smile. "You don't ever want to un-retire."

And you won't see the 22-year veteran purposefully avoiding the rigors of training camp. "Nah. Camp is hard for all the players, but it's helpful."

Shanahan, one of 12 players in NHL history to play more than 1,500 games, does not know when his last season will be. He politely declined a request from FanHouse to declare whether 2009-10 would be his final NHL season.

"I honestly don't know either way," the right wing said before his New Jersey Devils played a preseason game against the Islanders on Wednesday. "It could be my last season, but I could also play a few more years."

"You get in trouble when you're chirping all the time. It doesn't work if you always have something to say."The 40-year-old Shanahan has signed one-year contracts each season since the lockout of '03-04. This has been by design.

"I've had two-year offers, but I've preferred to go one season at a time at this stage of my career," he said. "The way the CBA works, teams have some cap flexibility signing players older than 35. For me, earning a contract year after year is motivating. Plus, if the season goes poorly for me or the team is not happy, you're not locked into a second year."

After joining the Devils -- the franchise that drafted him second overall in 1987 -- as a free agent for the second half of last season, Shanahan's first choice was to return to New Jersey for season 22. His teammates were happy to receive a full year of education from one of the top leaders of this generation.

"Brendan's been in every situation in the league and he knows how to handle them," said Devils fourth-year center Travis Zajac. "The thing he does best is keep everyone calm when we're getting too high or too low. He's not a loud or talkative guy. He really picks his spots when he says something in the room or to you individually. So when he has something to say, everyone listens."

Shanahan almost bristles at the concept of locker room loudmouths. "You get in trouble when you're chirping all the time," he said. "It doesn't work if you always have something to say." With Jamie Langenbrunner returning as captain and a roster with veterans such as Martin Brodeur, Brian Rolston, Colin White and Patrik Elias, the Devils do not lack for leadership. "You don't have to play a long time to be a leader," Shanahan said. "We have a room full of guys who are natural leaders."

Zajac, with 51 goals over his first three NHL seasons, said he marvels at Shanahan's approach at the rink. "Here's a guy who has over 650 NHL goals and he's out there every day working on his shot," said Zajak. "As a guy who wants to score more, I watch him at work. He has that incredible release, but he seems to do something different with every shot. He still has it."

Whether Shanahan will be sniping beyond this year is anyone's guess, especially his. "I'll know at the end of whenever my final season is -- not the beginning of the next one," said Shanahan, who lives in Manhattan. "It will be a gut instinct. It will come down to love of the game and whether I'm confident I can play at a level that's more than acceptable for me."

ETC: The Devils defeated the Islanders 4-2. Yann Danis made 20 saves for New Jersey, Martin Biron 27 for New York. There were approximately 4,000 fans in attendance for the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum debut of 2009 first overall pick John Tavares, who had one assist on a goal by Matt Moulson. Announced attendance was 8,256.

Islanders RW Trent Hunter suffered a strained pectoral muscle in the team's preseason game in Kansas City on Tuesday night and is listed by the team as day-to-day. Forwards Doug Weight and Sean Bergenheim are out with groin strains and have begun skating with the hope of returning to practice by next week. Devils C Patrik Elias underwent what the team termed "minor" groin surgery last week and is expected to be sidelined anywhere from 3-6 weeks.

The Islanders have yet to release a prognosis on the health of second-year RW Kyle Okposo, who suffered a concussion after a crushing center-ice check by Calgary's Dion Phaneuf in a preseason game last Thursday. On Monday, Okposo -- possibly on the verge of his breakout season -- returned to New York from the team's training camp in Saskatoon.

FanHouse asked Brendan Shanahan, who suffered a concussion in February of 2007 in a collision with the Flyers' Mike Knuble, for his advice to Okposo. "Thankfully, I've had just one in my career, but it was a serious one," said Shanahan. "The key thing I'd tell him is, when you think you're ready, you're probably not. I was cleared to play and I felt like I could play. But each week after I came back I'd think, 'Wow. I feel much better than I did last week.' Maybe I shouldn't have come back when I did. After the concussion, I had vertigo for a month. It is a serious, serious injury. You have to take your time with it."