Marleau: Joining 500 club is 'pretty special'

Patrick Marleau is both happy and relieved.

San Jose's veteran forward scored the 500th regular-season goal of his career Thursday - all with the Sharks - against the Vancouver Canucks, and more than anything, he's excited about not having to spend a ton of time at 499, which he recorded on Tuesday.

"Yeah, that'll do, getting it right away," Marleau said after reaching the milestone Thursday. "It was good to get it out of the way."

Related: Watch: Marleau becomes 45th NHLer to score 500 goals

Marleau's next goal will make it 20 on the season, the 14th time he's done so in a remarkably consistent career.

"When you hit a mark like this, you just start thinking about everybody who's kind of helped you along the way," he said. "Playing with one club and playing with a lot of guys for a lot of years on this team, it means a lot to share that with them and see how happy they are for you. This are going good right now. We're on a roll. It couldn't come at a better time."

The subject of trade rumors last season, Marleau, 37, is playing out the final season of his contract. He had five goals and eight assists during San Jose's run to the Stanley Cup Final last year, and with the Sharks still in win-now mode, Marleau is gearing up for another shot this spring.

But he will always savor Thursday night.

"The biggest thing for me is just seeing all my teammates and even getting congratulated by some of the other guys on the other team," he said. "It's pretty special."