Matt Dumba Announces Retirement

Defenseman Mathew Dumba has hung up his skates, according to an announcement from the NHLPA. Dumba played 13 NHL seasons with the Minnesota Wild, Arizona Coyotes, Tampa Bay Lightning, Dallas Stars, and Pittsburgh Penguins.

His professional career began in 2012 when the Wild selected him with the seventh overall pick of that summer’s draft. Dumba had an impressive year with the WHL’s Red Deer Rebels, scoring 20 goals and 57 points in 69 games. Despite debuting with Minnesota in the 2013-14 campaign, Dumba didn’t become a fixture on the Wild’s blue line until the following season.

He immediately became an effective two-way defenseman for Minnesota. In his first three years as a full-time defenseman, Dumba registered 29 goals and 76 points in 215 games with a +29 rating, averaging 17:35 of ice time per game. Still, Dumba had his best career season ahead of his second trip through restricted free agency.

During the 2017-18 campaign, Dumba finished with 14 goals and 50 points in 82 games with a +15 rating, averaging nearly 24 minutes of ice time per game. On a team with Ryan Suter, Jared Spurgeon, and Jonas Brodin, Dumba looked like an elite talent for many years to come. The following offseason, Minnesota rewarded him with a five-year, $30MM ($6MM AAV) extension.

Unfortunately, Dumba ran into injury trouble almost as soon as his next contract began. Over the five-year deal, Dumba averaged seven goals and 22 points in 58 games with a -2 rating. It was fine production, but it was far from what the Wild expected from their investment.

Departing the Wild organization on a sour note, Dumba signed a one-year $3.9MM contract with the Coyotes for the 2023-24 campaign. In his first 58 games with Arizona, Dumba scored four goals and 10 points with a -13 rating, averaging 20:04 of ice time per game. The Coyotes traded him to the Lightning at the deadline for a 2027 fifth-round pick.

On July 1st, 2024, Dumba signed a two-year, $7.5MM contract with the Stars, which would become the last contract of his career. Moving to a bottom-pairing role at American Airlines Center, Dumba finished the 2024-25 season with one goal and 10 points in 63 games with a -5 rating.

The following summer, Dumba was included in a salary-dump trade, with the Stars having to attach a second-round pick for the Penguins to acquire him. He didn’t stick around too long in Pittsburgh, as the Penguins sent him through waivers multiple times. In fact, Dumba played in his first AHL contest since the 2014-15 season while with the Penguins organization.

Now retired, Dumba finished his NHL career with 85 goals and 261 points in 748 games, mostly with the Wild. We at PHR congratulate Dumba on his lengthy career and wish him the best in his next chapter.