from the CP at TSN,

Roberto Luongo won 227 games during his 20s. He won 262 more games during his 30s.

And now, his 40s await.

Florida's veteran goalie — the oldest netminder and third-oldest player to appear in the NHL this season — will celebrate his milestone 40th birthday on Thursday. He's tentatively scheduled to start the Panthers' season-finale on Saturday night. Then it'll be time for Luongo to begin his rite of spring: figuring out whether to keep playing.

"I don't really want to make any decisions over the course of a season," said Luongo, who would be the 20th goalie to play an NHL game as a 40something. "Obviously, there's a lot of emotions involved with that and you want to make sure that you make the right decision for all parties involved. I still love to play the game, and we'll see where it goes."

Luongo still has three years left on his contract and hasn't given any indication that he's looking at Saturday night as a farewell. He led the Panthers' goaltender corps in starts and minutes this season — even after injuring a knee on opening night and missing a month, then being sidelined again a few weeks later with an aggravation of the same problem.

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