Always ready: How Joel Hanley has mastered his longstanding role with Stars

Imagine you’re interviewing for a job. As you browse the description, you realize it’s not a typical gig. You’re expected to show up each day, go through the same amount of preparation and give the same level of effort as your co-workers.

But when it’s time to put preparation into practice, they may or may not need your assistance. If they don’t, you’ll watch and provide support from afar. But if they do, you’ll have to step in and be on the same page as everyone else immediately. Either way, you’ll always have to be ready if your name is called. Sounds odd, right?

Maybe. But to Joel Hanley, it’s just another day at the office. It’s a job that the 32-year-old defenseman has embraced throughout much of his professional hockey journey.

“It’s just a role that I’ve kind of molded into here,” Hanley said. “Any role I can get here, as long as I am here, I want to do it.”

The mindset has served him well so far. The Keswick, Ontario native began his hockey career with the Newmarket Hurricanes in the Ontario Junior Hockey League back in 2008. Two successful seasons in the OJHL turned into four more at the University of Massachusetts. Following that, he signed a PTO with the Portland Pirates of the AHL.

Those experiences gave way to contracts with the Montreal Canadiens, Arizona Coyotes and Dallas Stars. Included within were multiple stints at both the NHL and AHL level with all three organizations.

But through the various leagues, stops, and changing roles, Hanley’s focus has never wavered.

“I think the hardest part might be mentally, but over time I’ve gotten better at that,” Hanley said. “In the beginning, you always want to play. But when you grow up a little bit, you understand that not everybody can be like Miro or Harls. As long as I’m getting a chance to play and help the team in any way I can, I want to do that.”

For professional athletes, playing time is paramount. It takes a special kind of devoted competitor to not only accept a role such as Hanley’s, but to find ways to excel within it. And yet, Hanley seems to have mastered the craft.

He signed a one-year, two-way deal with the Stars on July 1, 2018. The signing was overshadowed by the return of Valeri Nichushkin and the additions of Anton Khudobin, Roman Polak and Blake Comeau.

But Hanley arguably turned out to be the most valuable signing of the group. He spent parts of his first two seasons with the Texas Stars, amassing 38 points and a +20 rating in 100 games. And when the NHL hosted the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs in the bubble, Hanley made the Dallas roster.

He debuted in Game 7 of the Second Round against the Colorado Avalanche. That led to him skating in the final 12 games of the Stars’ run, including Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final against Tampa Bay when he scored his first career NHL goal.

Six years later, he’s now the fifth-longest tenured member of this current Dallas Stars team. And after years of bouncing around from city to city, he and his family are happy to have finally found a place to call home.

“It’s been so great here,” Hanley said. “Everyone from top to bottom, it’s such a family atmosphere. It’s not laid back, but it’s business and there’s that family aspect too where they make you feel welcome and part of the team no matter where you are in the lineup. We love the fans and the city and we feel at home here.”

The Stars are just as happy. It’s the reason he’s been signed to four different contracts under three different coaching staffs.

“It’s a huge luxury,” Stars coach Pete DeBoer said of Hanley. “Everyone has an extra player or two around. But his ability to stay ready, to sit out for long periods, jump in and be up to game speed is something that, in my 16 years, I haven’t had someone that’s better at it than him. There’s a mental aspect to that, too, where you have to stay self-motivated and stay ready. He’s really mentally tough, too.”

Look no further than his games played breakdown last season. Sit out the first six games, play three games, sit out for three weeks, play five of nine, sit out for a month, play one, sit out two weeks, play four more, sit out another month, play 13 of 19, and sit out the final six games.

In the playoffs, he sat in for the first three games of both the First and Second Round before being inserted to help close out each series. He also played in all six games of the Western Conference Final against Vegas. In 13 playoff games, he posted one assist, 13 blocks, 14 hits and a team-high +5 rating.

There was never any drop-off. He was always the same Joel Hanley the coaches trusted and needed.

“He plays left and right, he kills penalties, he moves pucks better than people give him credit for and he’s got a physical element to him that people underestimate,” DeBoer said. “When you put him in, there’s a feeling of solid and safety. If there’s a mistake made, it’s never going to be due to attention to detail or lack of compete. You can live with that as a coach.”

Hanley can live with it, too. After years of looking to cement his spot on an NHL roster, he’s found a niche with the Stars.

“It feels good for sure,” Hanley said about his role. “I think when I first started, I didn’t foresee this happening. I always wanted to be in this position. It feels good, but I don’t want to get too comfortable. Jim Nill was always like, ‘The easy part is making it, but the hard part is sticking around.’ That was kind of my mindset when I signed.”

Hanley has played in 10 of 30 games this season, including six of the last nine. He has one assist, 10 hits, and seven blocks in 12:25 average time on ice. It’s not flashy, but it’s not expected to be. It’s Joel Hanley, which is exactly what the Stars want.

“I think my game is steady and not trying to do too much,” Hanley said. “I’m not trying to play out of my capabilities. But at the same time, I always want to grow and get better. I want to keep that in the back of my mind so I can do a little more every now and then. Just trying to get better every day.”

This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.