Picard retires, was to fill in for injured Brodeur Jourdain

Veteran Dominic Picard announced his retirement on Friday, leaving the Montreal Alouettes to find a replacement centre on the offensive line.

The 33-year-old Picard was signed as a free agent in January to fill in for centre Luc Brodeur-Jourdain, who will miss the start of the CFL season with a knee injury.

Picard, from Ste-Foy, Que., played 151 CFL games for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, Toronto Argonauts and Saskatchewan Roughriders.

“Unfortunately things didn’t work out as planned,” Alouettes coach and general manager Jim Popp said in a release. “It’s never easy when a seasoned veteran announces his retirement, but we have to remember him for his accomplished career.

“He was a hard-nosed, poised and committed competitor. Although it was for a short stint, we really enjoyed having Dominic as a part of our organization the last few months.”

The six-foot-two 310-pound Picard won two Vanier Cups with the Laval Rouge et Or and was named CIS lineman of the year in 2005. In 2006, he was drafted by Winnipeg but left three years later as a free agent to join the Argonauts. In 2012, he signed with Saskatchewan, where he was twice named the team’s outstanding lineman.

Picard won a Grey Cup with the Riders in 2013. He spent one last, injury-marred season with Winnipeg in 2015.

– CP