Barteaux relishes WHL, pro experiences

When Dawson Barteaux and some of his buddies are on the golf course, a popular topic of conversation is a Western Hockey League series that never took place.

The 26-year-old defenceman from Foxwarren, who spent the last three seasons in the Winnipeg Jets organization mainly with the American Hockey League’s Manitoba Moose, was a member of the Winnipeg Ice in the spring of 2020.

One of the many things the pandemic stole from WHL fans that spring was a potential first-round matchup between the Dave Lowry-led Brandon Wheat Kings and the Ice.

“I couldn’t even imagine,” Barteaux said. “I had a lot of friends who played on the Wheat Kings. They do such a great job of keeping Manitoba-born kids there and they’re still some of my best friends who I skate with in the summer.

“It would have been heated, and even though it didn’t happen, it’s still brought up a lot about who would have won it.”

His buddies on that Wheat Kings team are Chad Nychuk — his brother Jory was Barteaux’s best friend growing up — Ben McCartney and Lynden McCallum. Barteaux said other Wheat Kings used to come to Brandon to skate in the summers, so he met a lot of other players from elsewhere as well.

Barteaux was a youngster tagged for greatness at a young age.

The six-foot-one, 190-pound defenceman out of the Yellowhead Chiefs program was originally drafted by the Regina Pats with the 14th overall pick in the 2015 bantam draft, one of six Manitobans to go in the first round that year.

He was just finding his way with the Pats playing 18 games as a 16-year-old when he was included in a blockbuster deal with the Red Deer Rebels in January 2017. The powerhouse Pats later lost in the league final to the Seattle Thunderbirds.

Barteaux made his name in Red Deer, emerging as a top defender in the league, and was drafted in the sixth round of the 2018 National Hockey League draft by the Dallas Stars.

He turned 20 in January of 2020 and was the most talented defenceman on a non-playoff team who hadn’t been dealt yet as the trade deadline neared on Jan. 10.

The Rebels just happened to be in Brandon that day to face the Wheat Kings. The trade came right at the 4 p.m. deadline, with the Rebels sending Barteaux and two picks to the Winnipeg Ice for six picks, including four second rounders.

“It’s a lot easier to talk about it now,” Barteaux said. “I had my time zones mixed up. I knew there was a chance but I wouldn’t say I wanted to be traded. I loved being there and being the captain of Red Deer.

“I actually thought I didn’t get traded so I went down for my nap and then I was woken up by my phone going off in my room. of course it was (Rebels owner and general manager) Brent (Sutter) and he was asking me to come up to his room and have a convo. That was when I knew.”

He was able to say his goodbyes to his Rebel teammates before and after the game, but because the trade came so late, more than 30 of Barteaux’s family and friends had tickets for the game that night.

Instead of watching him on the ice, they sat with him.

Brandon earned a hard-fought 2-1 victory that night in a game that Barteaux admitted wasn’t easy to watch.

To make things even weirder, the Rebels were in Winnipeg the next night, and Barteaux’s first game with his new club was a 6-0 victory over his old one. He had a pair of assists and was named third star.

“You have to throw your game face on the next night,” Barteaux said.

In the end, Barteaux had three distinct WHL experiences, as a talented rookie in Regina, an emerging star in Red Deer and as a hired gunslinger in Winnipeg after the deadline deal. (He played 23 games with the Ice before the season was cancelled.)

“I don’t know if it’s something a lot of guys have been able to experience,” Barteaux said. “It started off very hot with Regina. That was I consider a super team almost, just so talented with so many good players who came out of that team. Obviously it was hard being the young kid on that team but I grew so much in the five months I was there for my 16-year-old year.

“With Red Deer, that’s where I did all my growing. Going 16 to the middle of my 19-year-old year was really special. Brent is known to bring in boys but you head out of there a man, so I’m very fortunate for that. It was just a great experience and a great city to play junior hockey in.

“With Winnipeg, it was hard that the pandemic shut it down early because i think that would have been a great experience for me and that team to give her a decent run. It was definitely cool to be part of that team and be part of that trade.

“It’s hard to relive those days now because they’re long gone but those are some of the best years of my life.”

MOVING ON

With the late start in the 2020-21 season due to the pandemic, Barteaux played 25 games with the AHL’s Texas Stars, and split the next two seasons between Texas and the ECHL’s Idaho Steelheads.

“It’s definitely a big jump but the coaches and even the players I played with they all did everything they could to make sure I was prepared to make that jump. I think I was. Don’t get me wrong, there have been ups and downs in my career for sure, but just me as a person I was ready for that jump.

“It’s wasn’t too hard. It’s a huge jump to get out there and play against guys who are feeding their families, it’s a big step for sure, but I felt like I was well prepared.”

Even so, there was a lot to learn. With six years of pro experience now under his belt, he is asked what he wishes the younger Dawson Barteaux knew at the time. He chuckles, saying there might be a thousand things.

He’s still a student of the game who admits he doesn’t have it all figured out, but said there is wisdom that stands out.

“One of the biggest things is that you have to remember why you play,” Barteaux said. “There are always things that are out of your control. That’s something I maybe struggled with at the start. You just have to keep your head down and working as hard as you can and good things happen to people who work hard.”

Barteaux said he’s had tremendous experiences in both the AHL and the ECHL — the Steelheads lost in the ECHL final in 2023 — but he said there is a difference between the two loops.

“There is kind of a speed difference I guess I would say,” Barteaux said. “It’s a little bit quicker (in the AHL). I wouldn’t say it’s anything crazy. The ECHL has done a really good job growing as a league. Everybody heard stories when I was younger about how the league could be a little bit, but it was great for my development.

“I was fortunate to play a pretty good amount of minutes and work on my game so that when I did get that call to the American League, I was ready to jump in and be as much of a difference maker as I could be.

“It’s a stepping stone to the American League that some guys need and I did.”

He left the Dallas organization after the 2022-23 season, signing back in Winnipeg with the AHL’s Moose, with time again spent in Idaho and with the ECHL’s Norfolk Admirals.

The decision allowed him another opportunity to play in Manitoba.

“It’s super special,” Barteaux said. “Getting to play junior in Winnipeg was amazing but getting to play pro hockey for a team that you idolized growing up … Obviously the Jets weren’t here the whole time I was growing up but we had lots of Moose around.”

He said the chance to work with Mike Keane, who played 1,381 regular season and playoff games in the NHL before spending five seasons with the Moose, was special because he was always such a great role model. Keane now works in player development with the Jets.

Another formative influence lives a little closer to home.

Barteaux is a distant cousin of Ryan White, the Brandon forward who played 332 NHL games. While White was busy with his career when Barteaux was a youngster, as he got older, Barteaux was able to attend the legendary Whitey’s World summer training skates.

“He is so driven,” Barteaux said. “I still don’t want to go in the corner with Ryan White, even though he’s been retired for how many years. He’s a competitor, he loves the game, so he’s a guy I’m very fortunate to have in the summer to drive you, and you can ask questions about anything. He’s a great guy.”

WHAT’S NEXT

Barteaux had a goal in 32 games with the Moose last season and nine points in 20 games with the Admirals.

In his career, he has 36 points in 184 regular season and playoff AHL games, with 68 points in 127 combined games in the ECHL.

He’s been fortunate physically with no major injuries, although he said there is some wear and tear that’s part of the experience.

Where he’ll be skating next remains up in the air.

Barteaux, who built a home in Onanole with his wife Kaylynn, is in a familiar spot for many veteran pro players, with opportunities both in North America and also in Europe. He has a preference, although he’s at the point where he will explore both options.

“I would love to stay here and continue to chase that dream and play in North America,” Barteaux said. “I’m definitely entertaining it. I really don’t know. I’m just kind of enjoying it right now and probably in the next couple of weeks it will really come down to business and I’ll have to make a decision.”

» pbergson@brandonsun.com