CEDAR PARK, Texas -- Most athletes leave a mark on their sport. But some make waves – in this case, on the ice.
When Travis Morin was traded to the Texas Stars 11 years ago, no one could have ever imagined the impact he'd have on hockey here in Texas. And it didn't come without lots of laughter, and a few tears.
- Texas Stars captain Travis Morin's number retired in October
- Played for the Stars for a decade
- Now serves as coach and introduces kids to hockey
“I've learned more from him than I've learned from anyone,” said Texas Stars defenseman Gavin Bayreuther.
“He slowed the game down so much, then made the right play all the time,” recalled defenseman Dillon Heatherington.
“When you coach, there's always players that you always remember, and players that - they're always in your heart,” said Stars head coach Derek Laxdal. “And when you reflect back on the younger players - 'Hey, we had this guy named Travis Morin, and this is what he did.’”
Morin was born with hockey in his blood.
“It's hard to find a Minnesotan who can't skate,” Morin laughed.
Well, maybe he was just born in a state where everyone bleeds hockey.
“I guess if they're not skating, they're ice fishing probably,” he added.
Regardless, he's now spreading that Minnesota mentality - and the accent - here across Texas.
He played his first thousands of games in his home state. After college, he spent a few years with Washington, where he was drafted. He then moved to Texas 10 years ago, where he’s played for the Stars ever since. If you're wondering what 10 years with one organization looks like, it's a little something like this:
686 games played, 175 goals, 385 assists, 560 points -- all of them, by the way, team records.
Spectrum News anchor Stef Manisero chats with Texas Stars defenseman Dillon Heatherington. (Stef Manisero/Spectrum News)
“He came onto the team on a PTO, on a tryout,” Laxdal said. “It's incredible to see an athlete be able to spend 10 years or spend his whole pro career in one city - that's unheard of.”
Maybe not unheard of, but pretty darn close. Morin has played more games for one AHL franchise than any other player since 1974. But ask anyone what his greatest impact has been on the ice and the answer will be a long list of superlatives.
“The way he runs a power play,” Bayreuther exclaimed. “The amount of times during those 2.5 years I played with him was like 'Oh Mo, that poise is unbelievable.’”
“He's kind of like a quarterback on an NFL team, you know? You step back in the pocket and you can just survey the whole ice and make things happen,” Laxdal says.
“He gets the puck on the half wall and he finds the guy on the backside of the net every time,” Heatherington added.
“Yeah, I did alright on that,” Morin laughed.
But even the best need to know when to walk away. On October 19, 2019, Travis became a permanent part of Stars history, the first and so far only player on the team to have his number retired.
“I made it about, I don't know, three or four words into my speech at my pregame ceremony with all my family and coworkers and things like that before I broke down,” Morin said. “Teared up a bit on the ice watching the banner go up.”
It was an emotional night, and not just for Morin and his family.
“I almost shed a tear too just to see him shedding one," Bayreuther admitted.
Texas Stars defenseman Gavin Bayreuther appears in this image from December 2019. (Stef Manisero/Spectrum News)
His decision to retire was perhaps made a bit easier when the Stars offered Morin a role in the front office and as a coach. He now spends every day out on the ice, helping the guys grow their games. The transition, he says, has come with a bit of a learning curve. But, the mentality he brings to practice every day hasn't changed.
“I always looked at it as we're playing a game,” he said. “If you're not having fun, you probably shouldn't be doing it.”
So far, it's been a win-win. The guys he once called teammates still get to pick his brain, and his former coaches get to reap the benefits of having him on the bench.
“We run things off him all the time - 'Mo, what do you think about this? What do you think about this?'” Laxdal explained.
Because his most important skill translates across the boards.
“You have to have emotion, and Travis has emotion. If you watch him on the bench, if you go back and watch footage of him, he always has passion,” Laxdal said.
To put it simply, Morin loves the game of hockey, and hopes these kids will have more opportunities to love it, too. So, he spent the fall visiting elementary schools in our area introducing students to his sport.
“We bring all the equipment and then we leave it there, so those schools can use it for as long as it lasts,” Morin said.
And just one gym class is all it takes for these kids to pick up the basics.
“How to shoot in the correct place, and how to pass correctly and to use both hands on the hockey stick,” said David Radtke, a fourth-grader at Akin Elementary.
“And it's not about hogging the ball, it's about playing with your team,” said his classmate, Jackson Sainz
Fifth-grader Aditri Gilakattula explained: “You have to use your dominant hand under, so you can get a better grip.”
And Bryan Foster smiled as he added: “I like that it's kind of aggressive.”
“You see them and you ask them afterwards if they had fun and they're smiling ear to ear and saying 'Yeah, I like hockey. That was awesome,’ and ‘Can you come back?’ and ‘I want to play hockey now,’” Travis said.
Making sure the future of Central Texas hockey looks just as good as its past.
