Former NHL winger Marian Gaborik is celebrating an important milestone.<\/p>\n
The 43-year-old, remembered for his incredible speed, had an extremely impressive 17-year career that saw him play for the Minnesota Wild, New York Rangers, Columbus Blue Jackets, LA Kings, and Ottawa Senators.<\/p>\n
Gaborik took to Instagram on Wednesday afternoon to announce that he has officially gone seven-straight years without alcohol. His start date on this journey came just shortly after his final NHL season in 2017-18.<\/p>\n
\u201cToday is 7 years without a drop of alcohol,\u201d Gaborik wrote on Instagram. \u201cI\u2019m happy that I can inspire and help people. Very grateful and let\u2019s keep going strong.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s amazing buddy, congratulations,\u201d wrote another former NHLer, Wojtek Wolski. The two spent time together with the Rangers during the 2010-11 and 2011-12 seasons.<\/p>\n
\u201cKeep it up, buddy,\u201d added fellow Slovakian hockey star Zdeno Chara.<\/p>\n
Gaborik played in a total of 1,035 career NHL games, during which time he put up an impressive 407 goals and 815 points. He also suited up for 84 playoff outings and was a part of the Kings\u2019 Stanley Cup-winning roster in 2013-14. During that run, he scored a team-leading 14 goals and 22 points in 26 outings.<\/p>\n
The Slovakian winger surpassed the 40-goal mark three times in his career, while the 86 points he had in 2009-10 marked a personal best.<\/p>\n
As impressive as Gaborik\u2019s career was, it\u2019s equally, if not even more impressive and admirable to see the changes he\u2019s making in his personal life in order to benefit himself and likely those around him. He appears to now live in his native Slovakia with his wife Ivana Gaborik and their two daughters.<\/p>\n