Mats Sundin Signs With PokerStars, Retires From NHL
The rumour mill was flooding yesterday after NHL player Mats Sundin went on a Canadian radio station AM640 for an interview and dropped that he will be hosting a press conference with Pokerstars.net in what appears as though he will be signing on as a Team PokerStars pro member.
For those who aren’t up to speed on their hockey, Sundin is one of the top and most sought at hockey players, originally from Scandinavia and was a free agent as of January this year when he finished his contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs. He is one of the highest paid players currently in the NHL, and at 37 years old, is now seeing offers as high as $20 million on the table.
Obviously for hockey fans at heart they would much rather see him play with one of the Canadian teams, and likely hood of him going back to the Leafs is pretty nil at this point, however could the signing of endorsement at PokerStars be the end of his career? Can he play professional hockey and still have the stamina to play poker? Most say no which means that Sundin could in fact be retiring. He has yet to make plans to attend hockey camp, and during his interview with AM640 he made it very clear he was still undecided as to whether he even wanted to play anymore.
“To be honest with you I am still not at the point where I am ready to make a decision about my NHL career, I am trying to enjoy the summer, relax and get as much rest as I can and to hang out with my family and try to make a good decision but I am not there right now.”
When asked if he would be able to make this decision before training camp opens later this month Mats replied with “ I don’t know, the way it looks right now, probably not you know. My biggest thing right now is that I want to make sure I am mentally and physically ready to play …right now I just don’t know right now” According to Mats he has not even thought about which team he wants to join, and although millions are on the table, his priority right now is to decide if he wants to play, and that is still very much in the air.
During the interview it was specifically asked what his odds were in playing in the NHL this year after mention on his big deal with PokerStars and Mats replied with “I don’t really know at this point”
This is not the first time we have seen a professional athlete join PokerStars. Late last year Borris Becker who was a pro tennis player, signed on and we all know Daniel Negreanu is a huge hockey fan let alone a Leafs fan.
It has been confirmed by PokerStars this morning that Mats Sundin is now a Team PokerStars player and will be endorsed by the room, which of course means he will be playing online at PokerStars and major events.
“I am very proud to become an ambassador for PokerStars. It means I will be more able to fulfill my personal ambition of working with charities around the world and I will be donating 100 percent of the money I earn from playing poker to charity,” he said. “For me, the combination of excitement and challenge in poker, plus the potential to support good causes is a win-win situation.”
If you want to check out Sundin online you can visit PokerStars here! Use the PokerStars marketing code “FUZIONPOKER” to receive the free $50 bonus if you plan on playing him
