Initial excitement quickly turned to disappointment during the first season in a Dallas Stars uniform for Dan Hamhuis.
The minority owner of the Prince George Cougars was rejuvenated a year ago after signing a two-year, $7.5 million contract with the Stars.
The 34-year-old defenceman from Smithers was joining what he believed was a Stanley Cup contender.
Dallas was the Western Conference regular-season champions in 2015-16 with 109 points (50-23-9).
They were arguably the most underachieving team in the NHL in 2016-17, dropping a whopping 30 points and finished 34-37-11 to plunge to 11th in the Western Conference.
That kind of performance was not what Hamhuis signed up for after the Vancouver Canucks made the unwise move to let him go as an unrestricted free agent.
Dan Hamhuis and Kari Lehtonen celebrating Dallas’ 7-6 win over the NY Rangers was last week’s @budlight Frozen Moment! pic.twitter.com/jK34UVxkg4
— Dallas Stars (@DallasStars) January 23, 2017
So, what happened to the tumbling Stars?
“It was a tough start for our team; we had a lot of injuries to key guys, and we stumbled out of the blocks as a group. We just never really found our groove after that. Towards the second half of the year, I think we started to lose our confidence,” said Hamhuis, who returned to Prince George last weekend to participate in the sixth annual Cougars Alumni Hospital Charity Golf Tournament.
#2017 pic.twitter.com/ulEH0Qo4hs
— PG Cougars (@PGCougars) July 15, 2017
Hamhuis notched one goal, 15 assists, and 23 penalty minutes to go along with a -7 rating in his first season with Dallas.
However, after playing 59 and 58 games due to injury the previous two years with the Canucks, the 2014 Olympic gold medalist suited up in 79 games for the Stars.
“I was able to stay healthy all year, which is nice after having a few bad injuries during my last few years in Vancouver.”
The Stars are probably not as good as their 2015-16 record indicated, and not as bad as their win-loss ratio this past season.
Like most teams, they are rejuvenated for 2017-18.
Dallas has a new coach in Ken Hitchcock, a new starting goalie in Ben Bishop, and several new players that include Alexander Radulov, Marc Methot, and Martin Hanzal.
“I think everybody on the team is very motivated to put last year behind them and have a good year,” stated Hamhuis.
“We have all the pieces in place, but you never know until you actually start working together and going through the day-to-day.”
Hamhuis is just 49 regular season games shy of 1,000!
He has 319 points and a +74 rating for his career and will be entering his 14th NHL season with no time-table for retirement.
“I love the game still, probably more than ever. I’ve certainly got a family that’s committed to coming along for that ride. It’s not always easy on them, so it’s certainly a factor in things, but I enjoy it. My body is still doing what it needs to do so hopefully I can keep playing.”
Hamhuis may be in the twilight of his career, but he’s not panicking about getting a new deal before the possibility of being an unrestricted free agent again in the summer of 2018.
“We’ll see how the season goes; a lot of times individual things like extensions and new contracts come along when a team has a lot of success. The focus will certainly be on the team, and if we can have a good year, I think the individual stuff will take care of itself.”
Hamhuis is part of the Cougars Alumni Association that, in conjunction with the Prince George Cougars Society and the Spirit of the North Healthcare Foundation, announced $10,000 will be donated to local evacuees in support of the BC Wildfire relief effort.
“It’s special in a way that we get to help the people that have been displaced with the fires,” said Hamhuis.
“This community has always stepped up. The rest of the province is kind of having a bit of a crisis and people are being displaced. Prince George has been so great in welcoming people into the community and doing everything they can to help.”
The @PGCougars, @PGCougarsAlumni and @Spirit_North are partnering to support wildfire evacuees.
DETAILS ? | https://t.co/g3afcMXPjY pic.twitter.com/xYUhr7k5J2
— The WHL (@TheWHL) July 14, 2017
Hamhuis, the CHL defenceman of the year while playing with the PG Cougars in 2001-02, remains a fan favorite.
He has always been one of those rare unassuming athletes that does not crave headlines, attention or controversy; he just wants to play the game he loves.
Spending the off-season in Smithers, where he feels most comfortable, has always been a priority.
Yes, one can take Hamhuis out of the small town, but you can’t take the small town out of Hamhuis.
– with files from Hartley Miller, My PG Now
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