Goaltender Olie Kolzig said he has played his last game for the Washington Capitals after facing nearly 20,000 shots during a 16-year career.

The team's late-season acquisition of former All-Star netminder Cristobal Huet signalled the end of Kolzig's tenure in Washington.

"For me, it was disappointing the way it ended," Kolzig told Friday's Washington Post. "It's unfortunate because they have a good team here now.

"As an athlete, you have to know when to move on."

A spokesman for the Capitals could not confirm Kolzig's departure but said he had no reason to doubt the Post's story.

The 2000 Vezina trophy winner as the NHL's best goaltender won 301 games for the Capitals.

"Olie has been great for the Washington Capitals, and the Capitals were great for Olie," general manager George McPhee said.

"He has been a great leader and ambassador for the club. Olie can still play, and if he decides to continue to play, we wish him the very best."

The 38-year-old Kolzig's 711 games played for the Capitals is second only to New Jersey's Martin Brodeur for the most with one team among active goaltenders.

When Huet was acquired from Montreal, coach Bruce Boudreau initially split the playing time between his two netminders.

But Huet started playing well and ultimately won the Capitals' final seven games of the regular season to help the club reach the playoffs.

The South African-born Kolzig never played during Washington's seven-game first-round loss to the Philadelphia Flyers.

"From the first day I met him through my year-end meeting with Olie, I was struck by his class," said Boudreau. "He always was respectful and a true professional in every sense of the word."

Reuters