After 700 NHL Games, Popular Former Ottawa Senator Describes the Moment Last Season When He Knew "He Was Done"

Tyler Ennis is probably one of the funniest, most well-liked guys to ever suit up for the Ottawa Senators.

With that in mind, the Sens' social media team slapped a microphone on "Ennzo" for a practice one morning in 2022 and got a torrent of fun reactions from him. That included a confident self-evaluation after a slick goal in practice when he referred to himself as "The best to ever do it."

This week, Ennis was asked to evaluate two former NHL teammates who really are two of "the best to ever do it."

In his final four NHL seasons, Ennis had two stints with the Senators but also played for Toronto and Edmonton, playing with Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews.

"I would say the similarities are that they're so unattainably good," Ennis said on the latest episode of the Spittin' Chiclets podcast. "My whole life, everyone was like, 'You got so much skill.' (Then), I skate with Auston, and he's way more skilled than me. And he's 6-foot-3, jacked, and he shoots the puck like Joe Sakic. You're like, this is a different beast right here.

"Connor is the same deal. First practice with Connor, you're like, 'That's not a human.' And then, on top of that, you guys probably all know the guys who are the best of the best; they're different off the ice. Eating right. I didn't know what a carb was until I was 25. Those guys are getting treatment every day. They're just so dialled in. They just want to be the best.

"For me, making the NHL was the goal. For them, being the best is the goal."

Ennis on His Decision to Retire From Hockey Last Season

Still only 34, Ennis's career ended last season after he played seven games in Germany with the Mannheim Eagles. He encountered a different kind of Mannheim steamroller when he tried to hit an opponent, and it went very, very badly for him.

"If you see the clip, you'll be like, 'That's so stupid,'" Ennis said. "I went full Rey Mysterio. I basically jumped and did a crazy choke slam move, but I got the worst of it. And I ended up in a neck brace. I realized I can't be doing Rey Mysterio moves in Germany when I'm 34.

"I'm like, what are you doing, bro? I'm doing treatment in Hoffenheim, Germany, with a neck brace on and elderly women are doing rehab with me, and I'm like, 'This is the time.'"

The words of former Sens head coach DJ Smith also resonated with Ennis as he made his decision.

"I remember D.J. Smith was my coach in Ottawa and he was like, 'When you lose the raisies, that's when you can't play anymore. And I was like, 'Raisies? What does he mean by raisies?' He said, 'When you don't raise the puck when you shoot it anymore, you're done.'

"And I swear to God, I was in Germany, and I was like, '(Expletive), I haven't raised the puck in four games. Every time I shoot it, I'm just whipping it along the ice. I'm like, 'I'm done.'"

Ennis had a solid NHL career, playing for Buffalo, Minnesota, Toronto, Ottawa, and Edmonton and scoring 346 points in 700 games.

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