Kevin Bieksa will sign a one-day contract to retire as a Canuck

Kevin Bieksa may have a new career on Hockey Night in Canada as an analyst, but he technically hasn't yet retired from the NHL. 

That will change on November 3, as Bieksa will sign a one-day contract with the Vancouver Canucks so he can officially retire as a member of the Canucks.

This is something that has been in the works for a couple of years, which is why Bieksa has yet to formally retire from playing.

"I was going to sign a one-day contract and retire as a Canuck two years ago, on March 28," said Bieksa during the summer. "I don’t even know where it stands. We had it planned, but COVID shut things down on the 15th. I had my flight booked and everything."

That March 28, 2020 game would have been against the Anaheim Ducks, the only other team Bieksa played for during his NHL career. Bieksa spent 10 seasons with the Canucks after they selected him in the fifth round of the 2001 NHL Entry Draft, then three seasons with the Anaheim Ducks after he was traded in 2015 for a second-round pick.

Fittingly, the Canucks have arranged for Bieksa's one-day contract and retirement to again come during a game against the Ducks. On Thursday, November 3, the Canucks will face the Ducks at Rogers Arena for the first time this season.

"I am both honoured and grateful to officially end my NHL career as a Vancouver Canuck," said Bieksa in a statement published by the Canucks. "It was a privilege to start my career with this amazing organization, in this incredible city, with the best fans in the league. I am and always have been a Canuck at heart and it's fitting I retire as one."

Given the Canucks' issues with finding right-handed defencemen, they might want Bieksa to not only sign a one-day contract but actually play. Bieksa was the last right-handed defenceman that the Canucks drafted who played even 50 NHL games.

It's probably best that Bieksa stick to the pre-game ceremony — now that he's a member of the media, he might not quite be in playing shape. 

One of Bieksa's former teammates with the Canucks, Roberto Luongo, weighed in on the one-day contract.

As you may recall, Luongo's contract "sucks," so it's pretty easy to figure out which contract beat out Bieksa's for the worst contract in franchise history.