16-Year NHL Veteran Matt Duchene Is One Championship Short Of The
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When NHL players get time off at mid-season after spending several months mostly indoors, many will de-camp to a beach resort to unwind and load up on some much-needed vitamin D.
Not Matt Duchene. At the 4 Nations break, the Dallas Stars center and his wife packed up their three kids – ages six, four and two – and headed north. Destination: Duchene’s hometown of Haliburton, Ont.
Nestled in Central Ontario’s cottage country, about three hours northeast of Toronto, Haliburton has a quieter and quainter vibe than Muskoka. If you head up as soon as hockey season is over, you might be the only boat on the lake before the action starts picking up on Canada Day.
Those summer days are sunny and balmy. But in February, the thermometer doesn’t get above freezing, and the daily agenda looks very different from Cabo.
“Skating on the lake is different from anything else,” Duchene said. “You feel like a kid again. Getting in an ice hut with my dad and my son, catching some trout, it was special. They had a blast being around family and friends, and it’s easy. They’re in their own beds, and they’re used to being at the cottage.”
No longer a kid himself, Duchene has passed 1,100 NHL games and ranks second in his 2009 draft class in both goals and points, behind only John Tavares.
Selected third overall by the Colorado Avalanche, Duchene jumped straight to the NHL at 18, living with veteran defenseman Adam Foote and learning what it takes to be a pro.
“I don’t think I even realized how much I was a fish out of water off the ice,” Duchene said. “You don’t know what you don’t know.”
After playing just eight playoff games in his first eight full seasons in Denver, Duchene requested a trade in hopes of finding more post-season success. Early in 2017-18, he was dealt to the Ottawa Senators, staying for parts of two seasons before moving on to Columbus at the 2019 deadline. That April, he scored his first three playoff goals and experienced his first…
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