Joe Thornton has officially announced his retirement from the NHL following a 24-year career as one of the game's top playmakers.

The 44-year-old Thornton hadn't played since the 2021-22 season with Florida but hadn't made an official declaration about his plans until releasing a video Saturday through the San Jose Sharks.

Auston Matthews registered his second hat trick in two games to open the season, and the Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Minnesota Wild 7-4 on Saturday night.

William Nylander had two goals and an assist for Toronto, and Ilya Samsonov made 28 saves. Calle Jarnkrok had a goal and an assist, and Tyler Bertuzzi also scored. Mitchell Marner and Morgan Rielly each had two assists.

Matthews is the fifth player in NHL history to open a season with back-to-back hat tricks, joining Alex Ovechkin (2017-18), Cy Denneny (1917-18), Joe Malone (1917-18) and Reg Noble (1917-18).

Forward Derek Stepan, who became the fourth player in league history to record a hat trick in his NHL debut, announced his retirement Tuesday after 13 NHL seasons with four different teams.

Stepan, 33, made an immediate impact to start his NHL career, scoring three times against former Vezina Trophy winner Ryan Miller in the New York Rangers' victory over the Buffalo Sabres on Oct. 9, 2010.

He spent seven seasons with the Rangers after being selected in the second round of the 2008 draft.

Veteran forward Brandon Sutter, who last played in the NHL in 2021, has retired from the NHL after 13 seasons.

Sutter did not play over the past two seasons while dealing with complications from COVID-19.

Sutter, 34, was in camp with the Edmonton Oilers on a professional tryout (PTO). Sutter announced his retirement on Sunday when the Oilers released him from his PTO.