Todd Warriner has put his dress away, but not his figure skates.

The former Toronto Maple Leafs forward exhibited plenty of chutzpah when he donned a woman's wig and dress for a routine with his partner Isabelle Brasseur on this season's Battle of the Blades.

His memorable performance earned him rave reviews and later an invitation to skate in Chatham, Ont. exhibition with local skater Chelsea Robinson, who will compete with partner Nick Toth at the Canadian figure skating championships next month in Victoria.

"They still have the dress," said Warriner, when asked if he has it on display or in a closet in his Blenheim, Ont. home, just outside Chatham. "I hope to get it back, so I can put it in a case with my figure skates and put it on display."

Where he hopes to show off his memorabilia from Blades is Todd Warriner's Hockey Station, a multi-purpose synthetic ice training facility that holds summer camps, open skates, team training sessions and private lessons. Running the facility is Warriner's life now.

The 36-year-old is two years removed from his 956-game professional playing career, which began with the Toronto Maple Leafs after he was included in the trade that brought Mats Sundin from the Quebec Nordiques to Toronto. Warriner concluded his career with the Cologne Sharks in Germany.

He played nine NHL seasons and six more in Europe with stops in Finland, Switzerland and Germany. The decision to retire is never easy, but the timing was right two years ago for Warriner.

He had this business opportunity for him waiting back in Chatham and had help organizing his hockey training facility from former NHLers Todd Harvey and Todd Hlushko, who run a similar facility called the Hockey Loft in Cambridge, Ont.

Time to hang up skates

Plus, his final season was a challenging one in Cologne. The previous season, playing alongside veteran Canadian player Dave McLlwain of Seaforth, Ont., the Sharks advanced all the way to the league final. But in 2008-09 everything that could go wrong went wrong.

McLwain got hurt. So did Warriner as well as his former Toronto teammate Mike Johnson who joined the Sharks that season. The topper was Sharks and German national team goalie Robert Mueller, who was diagnosed with a brain tumour in Nov. 2006, was cleared to resume his career. But he suffered a setback around Christmas time and passed away in May 2009.

"It was a tough year," Warriner said. "The team was making changes. Dave was retiring. They sent Mike home, which was strange. So I knew it was time. Plus, I was talking with these guys back home who wanted to get rid of this facility. The timing was right."

There has been no rocking chair for Warriner in retirement. He not only has his budding business and participated in Blades, he joined the Blenheim Blades junior C coaching staff. The head coach is Warriner's friend Bob McNear and another assistant coach is Warriner's cousin, Paul.

"It's a different level," Todd Warriner said. "There are kids from ages 15 to 21. Some of the kids want to go on and want to do something with hockey, but most don't. You have a mix of all kinds of different kids. They're all good kids.

"The one thing I knew to rule out right away was this would not be the same competitive environment that I was used to. So I've had fun with it."

How far does Warriner want to take coaching?

"I'm not sure how far I want to take it," he said. "I've said before. I thought coaching nine year olds or 29 years olds would be ideal. I didn't think I would enjoy coaching teenage boys. But I have had fun."

Warriner resides with his wife and three young children in Blenheim. He returned to the Air Canada Centre last Saturday, however, and was honoured along with 13 other ex-Leafs prior to the team's annual homecoming game against the Montreal Canadiens. Of course, Warriner was responsible for the first goal scored at the Air Canada Centre back on Feb. 20, 1999, in a game against the Canadiens.

"It's cool because I will always be attached to the building and being invited back was cool, too," Warriner said.

Now if only he could get that dress back.