Hamonic sez Isle stay here
TRAVIS Hamonic has decided to stay with the Islanders, as the workhorse defenseman confirmed he has rescinded his season-long trade request for personal reasons to be closer to his family near Winnipeg.
“First and foremost, I want to thank the organization and my teammates for just the support all season,” an emotional Hamonic said after informing GM Garth Snow of his decision during the Isles’ s exit interviews Tuesday at their practice facility in Syosset. “When Garth and I spoke last summer, the whole reason this was brought up and came about was some serious health concerns with an extremely close family member back home. It was a tough, trying year…But in the last little while, we’ve learned that the situation has kind of stabilized itself.
“So first and foremost, it’s just relief for that, thankful for that, and I’m pretty grateful.”
The move to keep their leader in minutes per game on the blue line also marked the first dose of significant news as the Isles embark on what will be an important offseason for Snow following the franchise’s first playoff advancement since 1993 before losing in five games in the second round to Tampa Bay. Hamonic carries a reasonable $3.857 million annual cap hit over a seven-year contract that runs through 2020.
“I said the other day that being an Islander is one of the best things that I do with my life. And I cannot be more eager for next year’s training camp,” Hamonic said. “I wouldn’t have signed my seven-year deal if I didn’t like it here. I love everything about being an Islander. I couldn’t be more excited or happy, especially with the things back home.
“But I love being an Islander, I love to play here, I want to be here, I want to win a Cup here … I’ve never wanted to leave. It never was anything about this. I love my time here and want to be here and couldn’t be any happier.”
Hamonic added that he believes his situation “was a bit of a distraction all season” to his teammates, and even thanked the media “for respecting me and my family’s privacy.” But Isles captain John Tavares said Hamonic never had anything to explain or to apologize for in the locker room.
“It’s a pretty personal thing, so there’s more to life than just the game,” Tavares said. “As committed as we all are, how much we love to play and obviously something we do for a living, there are other factors in our lives and certainly some things affected Travis in a big way.
“We supported him all season. He played tremendous all season. As a team, and myself, we were just really impressed with how he responded and kept playing hard and really even elevated his game after a lot that had come out.”