Jordan Oesterle retires after 12-year NHL career
Jordan Oesterle, who played for seven different teams over parts of 12 NHL seasons, announced his retirement on Monday afternoon via his agency, O2K Sports Management.
Oesterle, 34, played the bulk of his NHL career with the Arizona Coyotes, with whom he spent three full seasons and made his only playoff appearance in 2020. The Dearborn Heights, Mich. product spent the 2025-26 season in the Nashville Predators organization, although he played mostly with the AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals.
An undrafted player, Oesterle parlayed a successful three-year stint at Western Michigan University from 2011 to 2014 into 409 NHL games between the 2014-15 and 2025-26 seasons. The 6′ left-shot defender amassed 23 goals, 96 points, and 75 penalty minutes over his NHL career.
Shortly after the conclusion of his junior year at Western Michigan, Oesterle signed his first NHL contract with the Edmonton Oilers in the spring of 2014. He appeared in his first 25 NHL games over parts of three seasons with the Oilers before being allowed to leave the organization as a free agent in 2017.
Oesterle signed with the Chicago Blackhawks ahead of the 2017-18 season, which ended up being his first as an NHL regular. He skated in 55 games with Chicago that year, collecting five goals and 15 points, before being traded to Arizona in a nine-piece deal the following summer.
While playing with the Coyotes in the 2018-19 season, Oesterle established career highs in goals (6), assists (14), points (20), and games played (71). He subsequently skated in nine playoff games with Arizona in 2020, collecting one goal and four points as the Coyotes defeated Nashville in the qualifying round before losing to the Colorado Avalanche in the Western Conference quarterfinals.
Following the conclusion of his three-year tenure in Arizona, Oesterle spent two seasons with the Detroit Red Wings before transitioning into more of an NHL/AHL tweener with the Calgary Flames, Boston Bruins, and Predators organizations. He skated in just one NHL game with Nashville in 2025-26 but also appeared in 69 AHL games with Milwaukee, racking up 14 goals and 46 points.