Damien Brunner has been out of EHC Biel's lineup due to a muscle injury. While trying to get back to playing, he realised that his physical condition would no longer allow him to play at the top level.
Brunner can look back on a long career. Starting out in Kloten, the forward made his National League debut in the 2006-07 season. During the 2008-09 season, he then joined EV Zug and stayed with the team until he tried his luck in the NHL in the 2012-13 season.
He played for the Detroit Red Wings and the New Jersey Devils but then returned to Switzerland in the 2014-15 season and signed with HC Lugano. He stayed with the Bianconeri until 2018. Since then, he had been playing for EHC Biel.
Brunner appeared in over 700 National League games and over 130 NHL games throughout his career. He played in five World Championships and was also part of one Olympic campaign with the Swiss national team.