“I love hockey, I love the Toronto Maple Leafs, this is my home,” Domi said, his voice cracking with emotion during a packed news conference at the Air Canada Centre. “There were other interests but I couldn’t see myself wearing another jersey other than the blue and white.”

Domi said he has taken a job with TSN.

“I may leaving the ice, but I’m not leaving hockey,” Domi said. “I am excited and nervous in my new role but I promise to bring the same person that had the passion, dedication and the enthusiasm to the broadcast arena that I delivered to the ice.”

Domi, 36, was becoming a hockey dinosaur as the role of the enforcer decreases while speed and skill are emphasized in the new NHL, rendering the five-foot-10, 210-pound plugger’s limited role redundant.

The Leafs bought out the remaining season of his contract during the off-season. They are paying him US$833,000 over two years, which is two-thirds of the $1.25 million he was owed.

Domi spent the final 11 seasons of his career in Toronto. He’s fourth all-time in NHL penalty minutes with just over 3,500.

He played 1,020 career games in the league with the Leafs, New York Rangers and Winnipeg Jets.

Domi recorded just five goals last season. With fighting down and offence favoured in the new NHL, the Leafs decided it was time to cut Domi loose.

“We want to thank Tie for his many years of service to the organization,” Leafs GM John Ferguson said in June while announcing the buyout. “He became a fan favourite for a reason.”