Shawn Weller has mixed emotions as he heads into his 17th pro hockey season, and third with the ECHL’s Adirondack Thunder.

For starters, Weller is enjoying playing near where he grew up in South Glens Falls. But this season will be different, because it will be his last one.

When Weller signed a one-year contract with the Thunder last week, he also announced that he will retire at the conclusion of the season. Of course, he’s hoping that his last game will be in the ECHL Kelly Cup Playoffs final.

“It’s kind of bittersweet coming back, knowing it’s going to be my last season,” Weller said during a telephone interview Tuesday, “but also great in the same sense that I get to kind of retire where it all started here at home. I’m pretty thankful that, after a long career, I can kind of call it quits on my own and right here in my own backyard. It’s kind of special.”

After collecting 14 goals and 13 assists in 51 games last season, the 37-year-old Weller spent the summer pondering if he wanted to play one more season, or hang up his skates for good.

“You kind of know, right?” Weller said. “As you go, I can’t play like I was 25 anymore. My body doesn’t move like it used to. Knock on wood, I’ve been lucky with injury. I don’t have any pain. I don’t wake up with sore joints or muscles in the morning. But just being able to perform at a level where I think I’m capable of being effective and helping my team. I probably know that in my mind, I have one year left or I had one year left over the offseason, when I kind of started thinking about this.

“I’ve been thinking about it for a year or two and, and being back home kind of rejuvenated me a little bit and kind of gave me a sense of being back around in the community and kind of enjoying where I grew up and playing in front of my friends and family.”

Weller was a third-round selection by the Ottawa Senators in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft. He has spent his hockey career in the ECHL and the American Hockey League, as well as a seven-year stint playing in Germany’s DEL2 and had 124 goals and 222 assists in 298 games. Weller captured a championship with the Bietigheim Steelers and was named the playoff MVP in 2017.

Weller enjoyed playing in Germany.

“It was awesome, to be honest,” Weller said. “I got to meet a lot of really cool people, got to see a lot of really cool places and had a decent amount of success over there.”

Weller played at Clarkson from 2004-07. In his freshman season, Weller played a major role in helping the Golden Knights from eliminating Union in the 2005 ECAC Hockey tournament best-of-three first-round series at Messa Rink. All three games in the series went to overtime. In Game 3, with 1:42 left in the first overtime, Weller beat goalie Justin Mrazek to give Clarkson a series-clinching 4-3 win.

It was Weller’s third goal of the season, and first since he had a two-goal game against Niagara on Oct. 29, 2004.

“I’ve been playing really, really good hockey the whole year, but I could not score,” Weller said. “I know it was a big goal that I scored, obviously, for us to move on. But it was also a huge monkey off my back moving forward.”

As for life after hockey, Weller would like to remain in the game, possibly as a coach.

“[Hockey’s] kind of all I’ve ever known,” Weller said. “Since I’ve been 16, 17, I’ve been playing high-level hockey. I’ve enjoyed it so much. . . . I definitely want to stay in the game in some capacity, whether it’s coaching the younger kids, or, someday moving up and coaching college or pro.”