Review: MLS Legend Pat Onstad Retires

Class of MLS. A real legend. Good luck to him in his future endeavors (after DC, that is!)

 

retiring , but hes only in his mid 40s......

 

Great keeper, can we now take him off the tarps at Qwest and get Keller put up there?

 

I don't think I've ever seen a keeper better at kick saves, and I'm convinced it's because he's Canadian. I have no idea if he's ever played hockey goalie, but he's Canadian, you know? It's part of his genetic heritage.

 

Pat Onstad is a 25 year history lesson in North American soccer. I checked on Wikipedia and he's played for 13 different professional clubs, not counting his youth and international appearances. I wonder if anybody remembers the Winipeg Fury, the Edmonton Drillers, or the three separate Toronto teams he played for--the Blizzards, the Rockets, and the Lynx. I bet he has some stories to tell. Hopefully he'll write a book.

 

I'm at a loss - whose hair can I make fun of now?

 

Congrats to Pat Onstad on a great career. It's amazing he's managed to play at such a high level for so long.

Does anyone know where to find the video of his hilarious own goal in one of his first appearances in San Jose? I couldn't find it on Youtube and that was one of the funnier own goals in MLS.

 

This had become a running joke in Flashman's household, with Flashman's girlfriend ALWAYS commenting on Onstad's hair, particularly with how much he was covering up his increasingly grey hair.

In all seriousness, however, he's been a great player in MLS for many years. I'm glad he's landing on his feet with DCU and Ben Olsen. Glad he and his experience will still be part of the league; hopefully Hamid (and Cronin) will benefit.

 

What he said. Either Shea (Chia) Pet or Kevin 'Billy Idol' Hartman.

(Though we may be too distracted with asking Daniel Hernandez about the 'real championship')

 

Congrats on a great career, Patrick. Always I guy I admired.

 

Jay Heaps' psychotherapist says hi.

 

The worst hair in the league, and a player I never liked. Didn't like the way he carried himself with his defenders, and I'm happy to see him out of the league, to be honest. No trolling intended, just voicing an opinion.

Looking forward to how Houston will replace him.

 

Great point. And I suppose Beckham will do something stupid for the playoffs again, so there's always that.

Jests beside, I have huge respect for Onstad and what he's done in this league. At this point, it's hard for me to pick between he and Kevin Hartman for best in this league's history. Hartman's got the longevity stats, Onstad has the better "averages" stats.

 

The Howler - is it on the web someplace? Has an MLS player ever gone from such an amazing low point to such heights?

 

Which one? There's an "epic fail" on youtube where he slips on a goal kick and kicks it right to KC's Bunbury who immediately runs up and scores on him.

Or do you mean the one that he batted into his own net when he first joined the league with the Quakes?

Don't mean to dump on Onstad on his retirement. In between those bad plays, there were plenty of good ones.

 

Farewell to one of the genuine good guys in the sport. I'm glad he is staying involved with MLS. For someone who came to the league late he certainly had a successful and productive run.

Now that he's done, is there anyone at all left in professional soccer who played in the original (1980s) Canadian Soccer League? Unless I am missing someone obvious, he was the last of them. Paul Pasqualoni was active until 2-3 years ago...

 

Great to see him staying in MLS as a coach. Love how much that seems to be happening these days.

 

I think he meant the batted ball one, but I couldn't find it. Here is the Bunbury one.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XbuwYy7jvcM"]YouTube - Pat Onstad EPIC FAIL[/ame]

Great guy who had a great career. Glad he's joining DCU.

 

I am a little surprised by how little noise (on BS) this announcement made. The retirement part to me was not all that interesting. We knew it was coming. However, the fact he will be coaching at D.C. United is what I am surprised no one is mentioning. Jason Kreis, Robert Warzycha, and others all came from playing in MLS to coaching. I think people are forgetting just how important this is. We are getting quality players who are turning around and coaching. Bill Hamid will have a great coach to help develop him. I am sure Pat will work with youth players too. This is one area as the league continues to grow that is exciting to see. Players retiring and then coaching in the US system.