Predators Defenseman Opens up on Personal Struggles

While there's been significant progress over the past several years, mental health discussions, especially in the world of sports, still have a stigma surrounding them.

Fortunately, Nashville Predators defenseman Spencer Stastney didn't let that stop him from sharing his story.

Stastney, 25, played just 23 NHl games last season and didn't suit up until late November due to personal issues. In a recent interview on the "32 Thoughts" podcast, he revealed that those "personal issues" were the result of a long battle with depression and anxiety.

Stastney's struggles got to a point where, after the Milwaukee Admirals - Nashville's AHL affiliate - were eliminated from the 2024 Calder Cup Playoffs, he was on the verge of retirement.

"I was thinking that I'm done. That I'm absolutely done with hockey," Stastney said, per the Tennesseean.

"I thought it was going to be a sigh of relief, that I was going to get up in the morning and feel great. I was going to apply for jobs, like I'm a new person. I'm free finally. And I was still miserable," Stastney said.

Stastney then met with a therapist through the NHLPA's player assistance program, and realized his family history had a significant impact on his mental health. He moved with his mother and brother to the Chicago area to continue his hockey career while his father and sister stayed in Milwaukee (his parents eventually divorced). Then at 16, he moved to Michigan to join the U.S. National Team Development Program.

The guilt of watching his family go through a tough time, Stastney says, made him slowly but surely lose his passion for the game.

"Knowing that everyone was having a tough time while I was having a blast with friends and living my best life, that guilt really weighed upon me and added up to a lot of things that I came to realize in therapy," Stastney said. "Pretty much everything went south in my family after the Chicago move."

"I didn't take care of myself. Slowly things started to deteriorate. I wasn't doing anything outside of the rink. I'd go to the rink, I'd come home, I'd sit on my coach, like, what do I do now?"

Fortunately, Stastney is in a much better place now and is back to playing the game at a high level. Though he says he's "still trying to figure out his relationship" with the sport, his story will hopefully be an inspiration for others to come forward as well.