DETROIT, May 5 (UPI) -- The Detroit Red Wings Monday declined to pick up on the contact of veteran left wing Luc Robitaille, making him a free agent.
After getting swept out of the playoffs, the Red Wings began the process of trying to get younger.
Robitaille, 37, who is the all-time leader among left wingers with 631 goals, was the first to go. The move is not surprising since Robitaille finished with career-lows 11 goals and 31 points this season.
In the playoffs, he skated on the fourth line and had just one assist when the Red Wings were swept in the Western Conference quarterfinals by the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim.
Robitaille signed with the Red Wings as a free agent in July 2002, surpassed the record of Bobby Hull for most goals by a left wing (610), and earned his first Stanley Cup title.
"We are very grateful to have had Luc as a member of the Detroit Red Wings," said General Manager Ken Holland. "He was a big part of our 2002 Stanley Cup championship, and it was an honor to have him in a Wings uniform when he broke Bobby Hull's record as the top left wing goal scorer in NHL history. The Robitaille family will always be a part of our Red Wings family."
Robitaille had 30 goals and 20 assists in the 2001-02 season, and added four goals and five assists in 23 playoff games.
The 6-1, 215-pounder also set the single-season record for goals by a left winger when he had 63 with the Los Angeles Kings in the 1992-93 season.
An eight-time All-Star, Robitaille won the Calder Trophy as the league's top rookie in 1986-87, when he had 45 goals and 39 assists with the Kings.
In 1,286 games with the Kings, Pittsburgh Penguins, New York Rangers, and Red Wings, he has 688 assists and 1,319 points.
