Former Penguins forward Matt Nieto retires

Former Pittsburgh Penguins forward Matt Nieto announced his retirement via Instagram Monday afternoon.

“The last few years, I’ve battled injuries that made playing hockey at the highest level difficult,” Nieto wrote. “I took last season off and did everything I could to find my way back. I’m not stepping away because I stopped loving hockey. I’m stepping away because I loved it enough to give it everything I had.

“To the San Jose Sharks, Colorado Avalanche, and Pittsburgh Penguins — thank you for giving me the opportunity to live a dream.”

Nieto, 33, did not play professionally during the 2025-26 campaign after two injury-filled seasons with the Penguins.

A free agent signing by the Penguins in 2023, Nieto’s brief tenure with the club was marred by injuries to each of his knees, which he initially suffered during the 2023-24 season. After rehabilitating, he bounced between the Pittsburgh Penguins and American Hockey League’s Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins throughout the 2024-25 campaign.

He departed in 2025 as an unrestricted free agent.

In 54 games with the Penguins, Nieto scored seven points while averaging 11:59 of ice time per contest.

A second-round draft pick (No. 47 overall) in 2011 by the Sharks, Nieto, a native of Long Beach, Calif., spent 12 seasons in the NHL.