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‘Nobody hears from him’ -- Ribeiro to retire following relapse, says agent

Nashville Predators v Arizona Coyotes

GLENDALE, AZ - DECEMBER 10: Mike Ribeiro #63 of the Nashville Predators during the NHL game against the Arizona Coyotes at Gila River Arena on December 10, 2016 in Glendale, Arizona. The Coyotes defeated the Predators 4-1. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

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Mike Ribeiro’s hockey career “is at an end” after he suffered a relapse, his agent and longtime friend Bob Perno has told Montreal media outlets.

The concern, however, shouldn’t be with his playing career but with his own personal health and well-being. In revealing interviews with La Presse and TSN 690 on Thursday, Perno went into detail about the depths of Ribeiro’s struggle with substance abuse, saying that he has been unable to contact his client.

“All I know, is that Mike hasn’t laced up the skates once since the end of the season,” Perno told La Presse (his quotes have been translated from French into English). “He doesn’t train anymore and he doesn’t go out on the ice anymore. He’s going to retire. There’s not one NHL team or a team in Europe that has reached out to me to ask about him. The way his career is going to end is really disappointing.

“No one knows what he’s up to these days. The problem, is that Mike doesn’t believe he’s sick. In his head, everything is fine. He left the rehab program offered by the NHL last winter. We’re really worried, but we can’t do anything. Every time my phone rings, I hope it’s him calling me.”

Ribeiro, now 37 years old, entered the NHL/NHLPA substance abuse and behavioral health program at the end of the 2013-14 season, according to Puck Daddy. His agent told TSN 690 that Ribeiro was clean for about two years, but that he suffered a relapse before Christmas.

“To answer your question, I don’t think he’s hit rock bottom,” Perno told the radio station. “We’re trying to get a hold of him in Nashville. We know he’s somewhere in Nashville. His family has seen him. His wife has seen him -- briefly -- and then he disappeared into the woodwork. We’re trying to get a hold of him. He doesn’t answer his phone. Nobody hears from him. I don’t think he’s hit rock bottom.”

Perno added that fellow agent Don Meehan and Dr. Brian Shaw of the NHL/NHLPA substance abuse program have also tried to contact Ribeiro.

Ribeiro split this past season between the Predators and AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals. Nashville put him on waivers after Ribeiro requested a trade, and he was eventually assigned to the minors.

Perno believes that when Ribeiro made the trade request -- following time spent as a healthy scratch, said the agent -- it was “downhill from there.”

“This past year, Mike’s role was really diminished ... and I think it affected him mentally -- getting older, having trouble seeing what he was going to do once it was all over,” said Perno.

“His play suffered in consequence. His confidence, his play, and, personally, I think that just about at Christmas time or shortly there after, I think he was -- whether he’ll admit it or not -- I think he was a little depressive.”