By Ken Wiebe /

While the dream remained, Nolan Baumgartner was beginning to wonder if the call was ever going to come again.

The 33-year-old Manitoba Moose defenceman hadn’t played in the NHL since the 2006/07 season before the Vancouver Canucks recalled him on Jan. 22, following a rash of injuries.

“Yeah, you always wonder but you keep pushing and never give up on it. I’ve always said that you’re playing a game for a living and it doesn’t matter where you’re playing, you’re always having fun with it,” said Baumgartner, a Calgary product who is serving as an alternate captain with the Moose this season.

“You think about it, not knowing if you’re going to get another game but if you get that opportunity, you have to take it all in and enjoy it.

“I felt I could still play there and keep up. It wasn’t like I was behind or anything. It was rewarding to get up there and play like that. I got some good ice time, too, which was nice. And I got eight games in, which I wasn’t expecting at all.”

The 10th-overall pick in the 1994 NHL Draft even scored his first NHL goal since the 2005/06 campaign, burying a saucer pass from Alexandre Burrows against Steve Mason of the Columbus Blue Jackets.

“I basically just had to shoot it into the empty net,” said Baumgartner. “But it was a good moment for sure. Actually, Columbus is where I scored my last (NHL) goal.”

The road back was a long one for Baumgartner, who posted a career-high five goals and 34 points in 70 games with the Canucks in 2005/06 and signed a lucrative two-year, one-way deal with the Philadelphia Flyers after becoming an unrestricted free agent that summer.

He played only six games with the Flyers in 2006/07 before he was banished to the American Hockey League and another seven with the Dallas Stars late in the season after getting picked up on re-entry waivers.
Getting buried in the minors wasn’t easy but Baumgartner never felt sorry for himself and his love for the game helped him get back to where many believed he might not return.

Baumgartner’s play impressed the Canucks’ brass and he moved his way up the depth chart, should another recall situation occur.

“I was real proud to see him go up and play as well as he did,” said Moose head coach Scott Arniel. “He made the most of his opportunity up there but now he wants to help us have success. You can see it in his play, his demeanour in the room and his fire on the bench. That’s what you like to see.”

After getting back from a broken pinkie that kept him out of 15 games, Baumgartner returned to the Moose lineup in time to participate in the 2010 AHL All-Star Classic, where he captained Team Canada in Portland, Maine.

“That was a ton of fun, it was nice getting back to where it all started,” said Baumgartner, who has played in three AHL All-Star Classics. “I started my pro career in Portland (with the Pirates) and I played there for four years. There were some familiar faces in the crowd and some of the people that worked in the arena were still there.
“It was a great experience.”

MOOSE NOTES
Baumgartner became the 10th Moose player to suit up for the Canucks this season as both teams have dealt with a rash of injuries...Russian forward Sergei Shirokov was the only other Moose player to take part in the AHL All-Star Classic and he scored two goals for PlanetUSA in a 9-8 shootout loss. Baumgartner had a goal and an assist in the game...The Moose received a pair of veteran defenceman from the NHL after Mathieu Schneider (Canucks) and Nick Boyton (Anaheim Ducks) cleared waivers. The Moose also got forward Dan Sexton back from the Ducks after he scored nine goals and 18 points in 28 NHL games. Schneider had three goals and five points in eight AHL games before suffering a knee injury that required surgery...Forward Alexandre Bolduc suffered a separated shoulder during an NHL recall with the Canucks and is done for
the season.