Much of Shaun Van Allen’s life has been spent travelling on the road, but the former Ottawa Senator said he and his family have settled in the place where his NHL career ended.
“I guess you could say Ottawa is our home now. We’ve lived here the longest of any city, probably 12 to 15 years,” said Van Allen, who spent six years with the Senators before retiring after the lost season from the 2004-05 NHL lockout.
Van Allen’s choice to raise his family in Ottawa also led to an opportunity to return to hockey now that his playing days are over.
He is now in his third season as the assistant coach of the Carleton Ravens men’s hockey team, and the team is putting together a strong season, ranked ninth in Canada among Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) teams.
Ravens head coach Marty Johnston said working alongside Van Allen is great because they have a great relationship both on and off the ice.
“Three years ago when I was lucky enough to get the job, he was my first choice to be an assistant coach,” Johnston said. “I think he’s been a huge asset to the program and the university itself.”
With success at the CIS level to go along with his NHL playing resumé, Johnston said he believes Van Allen will get offers to be a head coach soon.
Van Allen said he has already turned down other coaching opportunities in the past because of his family, who he admits will continue to affect his decisions in the future.
“It makes me think at times whether I want more, but I just think I’ve travelled so much and been away from my family that I’d like to be around them a lot more,” he said. “Hopefully, we can stick around in Ottawa because we all love living here.”
However, if Van Allen decides to pursue coaching any further, he said he hopes for his new career to mirror his old one as a player, rising up on his journey to higher levels of hockey.
“I don’t know if I want to be an NHL coach yet, but I’d like to get some head coaching experience somewhere,” he said. “But it has to fit into my family life. As my kids are getting older, there’s maybe going to be some more free time for me to explore my other options.”
Van Allen, 45, played as a defensive forward for 11 full seasons in the NHL, but his long climb to the highest level was not without its travels.
He was born and raised in Calgary, Alta., but his hockey journey had several more stops around North America as he moved into the professional ranks.
“It was great to see different parts of the world, but my dream all along was to play in the National Hockey League,” Van Allen said.
His long path to the NHL after finishing junior included about six seasons in Cape Breton, N.S. playing for the Oilers’ minor league affiliate, winning the Calder Cup in his final year there.
Following a pair of brief stints in the NHL with Edmonton, he signed as a free agent in 1993 with an expansion franchise in Anaheim and went on to play three full seasons with the club before being traded to the Ottawa Senators, where he spent six of his final eight seasons.
Van Allen said he knows that he was fortunate to get an opportunity to live out his childhood dream, but added that nothing was handed to him along the way.
“I recognize that you have to be a little bit lucky, but you also have to put in an unbelievable work ethic,” he said. “Anyone who reaches a small percentage of what everyone wants to do has to put a lot of time and effort in.”
Extensive travelling is one downside of this dedication for professional athletes, and Van Allen knows plenty about some of the struggles that affect those trying to balance their careers with their families.
He met his wife Colleen while playing in Cape Breton, and they began a family early into his time as an NHL regular.
They now have a son, Aaron, who is 18 years old, as well as two daughters aged 16 and 13.
Van Allen said raising his son in particular has been challenging not only because he was their first child, but also because Aaron has autism.
“It’s tough when you’re young having kids, but then you throw in having a child with a disability,” he said. “At first, you don’t dream of having a special needs child, but I can’t think of having him any other way than he is now.”
