Junior career Marleau's
junior hockey career took him to the
Seattle Thunderbirds of the
Western Hockey League (WHL), where he played two seasons. In his rookie campaign in
1995–96, Marleau exploded onto the scene in Seattle scoring 32 goals and 74 points, leading his team to a playoff loss to the defending
Memorial Cup champions, the
Kamloops Blazers, featuring future NHL star
Jarome Iginla. The series ended 4–1, but Seattle took three of the losses to overtime before the Blazers won. During the
1996–97 season, Marleau was named
captain of the Thunderbirds and led them to a second-place finish, behind the
Portland Winter Hawks, in the Western Conference during the regular season. Marleau improved to 51 goals and 125 points, finishing top-three in the WHL in both categories. In the playoffs, Marleau led the Thunderbirds to the club's first Western Conference Championship before the team bowed out in the WHL Finals to the eventual Memorial Cup runner-up
Lethbridge Hurricanes in four games. Marleau finished second in the
WHL's Player of the Year voting, losing to
Peter Schaefer of the
Brandon Wheat Kings.
Professional (1997–2021) San Jose Sharks (1997–2017) Following his second year of major junior, Marleau was drafted second overall by the
San Jose Sharks in the
1997 NHL entry draft, behind future Sharks teammate
Joe Thornton, who was selected by the
Boston Bruins. Although he struggled early in his career, Marleau learned to combine his excellent offensive talents with defensive prowess from former Sharks head coach
Darryl Sutter. in December 2006. During the
2006–07 season, he became the Sharks' all-time regular season leader in goals, and points. Marleau was the youngest player in the 1997 draft class, and he debuted immediately at the start of the
1997–98 season. This conceptually makes him the youngest player to ever play in the NHL (in the modern draft era it would be impossible to debut at an earlier age than Marleau, as he was born on the last day of the draft cut-off, and debuted immediately in the first game of the next season). With the departure of five-year captain
Owen Nolan following the
2002–03 season, the Sharks employed a rotating captaincy for the first half of the
2003–04 season, seeing
Mike Ricci,
Vincent Damphousse and
Alyn McCauley wear the "C" before the captaincy was permanently awarded to Marleau midway through the season. The new captain went on to match his previous personal high of 57 points from 2002 to 2003. During the
2004–05 NHL lockout, Marleau was inactive during the season but returned in
2005–06, having just signed a new three-year,
US$12.5 million contract in August 2005, with a breakout season, becoming a point-per-game player with career-highs of 34 goals, 52 assists and 86 points in 82 games. New rule changes implemented by the NHL at the start of the first season back from the lockout that emphasized speed may have contributed to Marleau's successful campaign. In a game against the
Colorado Avalanche on March 19, 2006, Marleau scored two goals to acquire his 400th career point, edging him closer to Owen Nolan's franchise mark of 451 points. Near the halfway point of the season, the Sharks acquired superstar Joe Thornton from the Boston Bruins. Thornton was also the only player picked ahead of Marleau in the 1997 NHL Entry Draft. The Sharks were quickly considered a contender once acquiring "Jumbo Joe", but were upset by the eighth-seeded
Edmonton Oilers in the second round. At the end of the season, Marleau was voted one of three finalists for the
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy, awarded to the NHL's most gentlemanly player, but lost out to
Pavel Datsyuk of the
Detroit Red Wings. to
2009. In
2006–07, Marleau passed Owen Nolan's franchise marks for goals, assists and points all within a few weeks. On January 4, 2007, he passed Nolan's 451-point mark with a goal and three assists in a win against the Detroit Red Wings. He then scored his 207th goal a week later on January 11 in a win against the
Los Angeles Kings. Marleau continued at a point-per-game pace on the season with 78 points in 77 games, ranking second on the team in each category. In January 2007, Marleau played in his second
NHL All-Star Game, scoring a goal. However, with high expectations for the playoffs, the Sharks were eliminated by Detroit in the second round in six games. In the off-season, Marleau signed a two-year, $12.6 million contract extension in August 2007 to keep him with the Sharks until the end of the
2009–10 season. The following season, Marleau reached the 500-point mark for his career against the
Phoenix Coyotes on November 14, 2007. However, his production for the season dipped to just 48 points, his lowest total since the
2001–02 season. In the
2008 playoffs, Marleau became the first NHL player since
Brett Hull in 2002 to score shorthanded goals on consecutive days in the playoffs when he scored back-to-back shorthanded markers in Games 3 and 4 of the Western Conference Semi-final against the
Dallas Stars. Despite his efforts, which included eight points in 13 games total for the playoffs, the Sharks were eliminated in the second round for the third consecutive year. In the midst of a rejuvenated year for Marleau, overcoming his previous season's dismal offensive output, he was selected to the
2009 NHL All-Star Game in
Montreal, replacing the injured Pavel Datsyuk. In the summer of 2009, Marleau was removed as captain by head coach
Todd McLellan.
Rob Blake was named captain on September 30, 2009. Later in the year, while Blake was injured, Marleau was promoted to alternate captain, joining Joe Thornton and
Dan Boyle. On November 27, 2009, Marleau notched a hat-trick against the Edmonton Oilers. His third goal of the game was a shorthanded marker to tie the game 4–4; the Sharks finished the game with a score of 5–4 in a shootout. On December 1, 2009, Marleau played in his 900th career NHL game and notched two goals in a 5–2 win over the
Ottawa Senators. On December 26, 2009, Marleau scored his 300th (and 301st) career goal in a 5–2 win over the
Anaheim Ducks. On January 12, 2010, Marleau scored his 30th (and 31st) goal against the Phoenix Coyotes to become the fastest player in franchise history to score 30 goals in just 47 games. It was also the first time a Sharks player was the first NHL player to reach 30 goals. In the
2010 playoffs, Marleau scored the game-winning goal in Games 3 and 5 in the second round against the Detroit Red Wings, then scored five of the Sharks' seven goals in a sweep at the hands of the eventual Stanley Cup champions, the
Chicago Blackhawks. On June 24, 2010, Marleau chose to not test the
free agent waters and instead re-signed with the Sharks to a four-year contract worth $27.6 million ($6.9 million per year). On January 17, 2011, Marleau played his 1,000th career game and scored an early goal against the Phoenix Coyotes, becoming the third-quickest player to 1,000 career NHL games as measured by age, as well as the youngest player in NHL history to reach the milestone with the same franchise. Once the
2012–13 NHL lockout had concluded, Marleau got off to one of the best offensive starts in NHL history. He scored two goals in each of San Jose's first four games, then coming one goal short of five-straight multi-goal games, becoming only the second player in NHL history to open a season with four straight multi-goal games. The only other player to do it was
Cy Denneny with the
original Ottawa Senators in 1917–18. On March 10, 2013, against the Colorado Avalanche, Marleau scored his 400th career goal after failing to score in the previous six games. However, the Sharks lost the game 3–2. In the
2013 playoffs, Marleau scored his 57th career playoff goal, the second most of all active players, and 37th all-time. Marleau scored the most shots (41) and goals (5) with the Sharks in the postseason, and ended the season with 17 goals, 150 shots, and six, eight and 14 goals, assists and points, respectively, on powerplays, both ranking second on the team. Marleau also ranked third on the team with 31 points. On January 24, 2014, Marleau signed a three-year contract extension with the Sharks through to the 2017 season. At the end of the
2013–14 season, Marleau ranked second in goals on the Sharks and was named a finalist for the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy for the second time, this time losing to
Ryan O'Reilly. On August 20, 2014, Sharks head coach Todd McLellan announced that the Sharks would start training camp for the
2014–15 season without a captain or alternates; he specified Marleau would have the opportunity to "earn back" a letter during camp. On January 11, 2016, Marleau played in his 500th consecutive game. , he scored 44 goals, his personal best. On March 19, 2016, Marleau became the youngest player to play in his 1,400th NHL game, becoming 1 of only 36 players to accomplish this feat. On January 23, 2017, against the Colorado Avalanche, Marleau scored four goals for the first time in his career, all in the third period, three of which came in 7:42. On February 2, 2017, against the
Vancouver Canucks, Marleau scored his 500th career goal, the 45th player in NHL history to do so, and only the 17th player to do so with his original team.
Toronto Maple Leafs (2017–2019) Entering the open market for the first time in his career, Marleau was heavily courted by multiple teams, including the San Jose Sharks,
Toronto Maple Leafs, Anaheim Ducks and Dallas Stars. The prospect of leaving his team of nearly 20 years caused Marleau's decision to be delayed, but after days of deliberation, on July 2, 2017, Marleau signed a three-year contract worth $6.25 million annually with the Maple Leafs. Marleau cited returning to Canada, as well as the young Maple Leafs projection as a Stanley Cup contender as reasons for signing in Toronto. Additionally, he cited the Maple Leafs' advanced
sports science department as benefit of signing with the team (during free agency, Marleau was in the midst of one of the longest
iron man streaks in NHL history). Marleau left San Jose holding nearly every offensive record in franchise history. During his first season with Toronto, Marleau continued to reach notable career milestones. He played in his 1,500th career NHL game on October 18, 2017, becoming the 18th player in NHL history to reach 1,500 contests. Marleau recorded his 100th game-winning goal in a win over the Anaheim Ducks, becoming the eighth player to score 100 game-winning goals. He scored his 1,100th career point on December 12, becoming the 60th player in NHL history to reach the feat. Later during the season, he passed Maple Leafs' great
Darryl Sittler with 1,122 career points, becoming 58th on all-time list. His 1,122nd point came in a win over the
Buffalo Sabres on March 15, 2018. On June 22, 2019, with the Maple Leafs in need of salary cap relief, Marleau was traded to the
Carolina Hurricanes (along with a conditional first-round pick and a seventh-round pick in the
2020 NHL entry draft) in exchange for a sixth-round pick in the 2020 Draft. With the Hurricanes unable to convince Marleau to play for the team due to Marleau preferring to return to the West Coast, on June 27, Marleau was bought-out from the remaining year of his contract by the Hurricanes. Carolina used the first-round pick acquired from the Maple Leafs to select
Seth Jarvis.
Return to San Jose (2019–2020) On October 9, 2019, Marleau signed a one-year, $700,000 contract to return to the Sharks. The following day, he formally made his Sharks return against the
Chicago Blackhawks; he scored two goals in a 5–4 victory, the Sharks' first of the
2019–20 season. Marleau received a standing ovation during his first home game on October 13; he recorded an assist in a 3–1 win over the
Calgary Flames. On October 25, Marleau played his 1,500th game as a member of the San Jose Sharks, and became the seventh player in NHL history to play 1,500 games with one NHL franchise. On January 11, 2020, Marleau played in his 1,700th NHL game, becoming the fifth player in NHL history to reach the mark, and youngest to do so, as the Sharks defeated the Stars 2–1.
Pittsburgh Penguins (2020) With the Sharks sitting outside a playoff spot approaching the trade deadline, many speculated that Marleau and fellow Sharks veteran
Joe Thornton would be traded for a shot at winning the
Stanley Cup. On February 24, 2020, Marleau was traded to the
Pittsburgh Penguins for a conditional 2021 third-round pick. His Cup ambitions would quickly end however as the Penguins were defeated in four games by the Montreal Canadiens, who were the lowest-seeded team to make the postseason.
Third stint in San Jose (2020–2021) On October 13, 2020, Marleau returned to San Jose, signing a one-year contract. On April 19, 2021, in an away game against the
Vegas Golden Knights, Marleau played his 1,768th NHL game, breaking the all-time NHL regular season games played record formerly held by
Gordie Howe since 1961. At the time he surpassed Howe's record, Marleau had missed only 31 games in his career, and had played with or against 37% of the players who had ever played in the NHL. He has played in all 82 regular season games in 11 separate seasons. One game later, on April 21, Marleau became the fourth player in NHL history to record
900 consecutive games played. After going unsigned during the
2021–22 season, Marleau announced his retirement on May 10, 2022. His number, 12, was retired by the Sharks on February 25, 2023, making him the first member of the San Jose Sharks franchise to receive this honor. ==International play==