With the Brampton Beast signing many young players this offseason, the team announced on Friday afternoon that Lindsay Sparks has decided to retire.
Sparks has only been on the Brampton Beast roster for most of last season. When he wasn’t playing in Southern Ontario, he was loaned to the Cleveland Monsters in the American Hockey League where he played five games. Throughout his time with the Beast, Sparks scored 22 goals for 49 points.
Before Sparks made the jump to pro, he played four seasons of collegiate in the NCAA with the Michigan Wolverines. During the 2009-2010 season, Michigan won the CCHA championships, but lost in the primary round to the Miami RedHawks. This was in lead up to the final four.
After university, Sparks signed in the ECHL where he jumped around from team-to-team. As such, the centreman has seen time with the Fort Wayne Komets, South Carolina Stingrays, Greenville Road Warriors and Cincinnati Cyclones. Other teams he hit the ice with include the Missouri Mavericks, Orlando Solar Bears, Rapid City Rush and Atlanta Gladiators.
Sparks, who stands at 5’9, also saw ice time in the AHL. While he played less than 40 games at that level, the 30-year-old skated with the Tucson Roadrunners and Providence Bruins during the latter part of his career. He also hit the ice in Europe for a few years with stints in Italy, Sweden and Denmark.
As his final team in pro hockey, Brampton was the closest city through his whole career to his hometown of Oakville. Through his six years in the league, the forward collected a total for his pro career of 254 points.