As a family man and a 31-year-old veteran of 12 professional seasons and 16 professional teams, Drew MacIntyre wouldn’t mind a break in what’s been a nomadic, whirlwind career to this point.
That said, he’s made it clear that he won’t sacrifice his chance to win hockey games.
MacIntyre, who set a franchise record for games played in a single season during his lone campaign with the Checkers, made it clear at this spring’s exit meetings that the organization’s other roster moves would have the biggest factor on whether or not he’d like to return for another season.
“I’m here to win,” said MacIntyre, who led the league with 26 losses despite being among the team’s top players. “I’m not here to babysit and teach the young guys some stuff. I want to be an example for them and I want to teach them stuff, but I want them to know that I’m going to battle and do whatever I can to win every night. I think that’s what they need to learn.
“I love the city, I love the organization and I’d love to be back, but if we have one of the youngest teams again, then no, I’m not interested.”
It’s been quite a while since MacIntyre has spent two full, consecutive seasons in the same organization, so he’s used to packing his bags and starting over. It’s his wife and two daughters that would make him more hesitant.
“Don’t get me wrong – my family loves it here and that would be a huge reason why I’d come back,” he said. “My daughter is in school and I don’t like moving her around. I feel horrible every time I have to do it. She’s a trooper and my wife’s a trooper and my three-year old is starting to be a trooper, but I want to win.
“Whatever time I have left playing this game, I want to enjoy it to the max.”
That would obviously involve a return to the playoffs and a chance to win his first championship. He’s come close, getting to the conference final with Hamilton in 2011 and last season with the Toronto Marlies, where he posted a sterling 2.08 goals-against average and .941 save percentage in 14 games before losing to the eventual champion Texas Stars in seven games. This year marked just the second time he’s missed the playoffs since 2006.
As he’s said, Charlotte has all the other benefits he’s looking for, one of which is the upcoming return to Bojangles’ Coliseum.
“Bojangles’ is going to be really exciting,” he said. “I was there for the (public skate on April 8) and got a really good feeling about the place. I hope we have a really tough team to play against, because if we do it will be a tough place to play for the visitors.
“That place is hockey. I love how fans are on top of you. Those Tuesday and Wednesday night games at Time Warner were not the best atmosphere. I love Time Warner and it’s a great building, but Bojangles’ will definitely be more hockey.”
There’s also the chance to see some of his younger teammates from this season take their games to the next level.
“I still enjoyed it, it was a fun year and we had a great bunch of guys,” he said. “A team lower in the standings is not fun if the guys aren’t getting along, but our guys were really tight-knit and that made it a lot more fun. We had fun at practice. That was huge.”
Regardless of his personal feelings, there’s also the other side of the equation – what the Hurricanes want to do. If they keep both Cam Ward and Anton Khudobin for next season (each player is entering the last season of his contract), NHL opportunities may again be limited as they were this season, when MacIntyre’s only appearance with the Hurricanes was to back up for one game. It could mean the difference between again playing the role of the organizational No. 3 or perhaps even getting a crack at a long-awaited NHL job.
Either way, as long as MacIntyre feels comfortable that the Checkers will be competitive, there seems to be a fit for both parties, as it’s doubtful that Daniel Altshuller and Rasmus Tirronen, the Hurricanes’ current tandom of pro prospects who have combined to play just one AHL game, would be ready for a starring role as early as next season. If it isn’t MacIntyre that returns, it would likely be someone in a similar mold.
“We’ll see,” said MacIntyre. “Like every other summer of my career, we’ll wait and see.”
