Kevin Dallman: A real find for the league
The latest edition of KHL.ru’s review of the careers of league legends looks at one of our longest serving imports. Kevin Dallman, who played for Barys and SKA, holds several records.
From North America to Central Asia
Back home, Kevin Dallman didn’t exactly stand out. His story is shared by hundreds, if not thousands of players. Minor league hockey, life on the bubble between the NHL and the farm clubs, and ever-decreasing hopes of establishing himself in the show. Many Canadian and American players do this for their entire career. But some take the plunge and head across the Atlantic – where a select group blossom into real stars. That’s Kevin Dallman’s story.
In the mid-2000s, Dallman was part of Boston, St Louis and Los Angeles but never secured himself a spot on the first team. There was little sign of the scoring power that he would later unleash in the KHL. In three seasons, he played 154 NHL games, scoring eight goals and 23 assists.
Tired of a supporting role, Dallman decided to join the newly-formed KHL. He found himself at a new club, Barys Astana, which had no limit on imports. He shared a locker room with fellow Canadians Marc Lamothe and Trevor Litovski, Czech Tomas Kloucek, Slovaks Branislav Mezei and Josef Strumpel, plus Russia’s Konstantin Glazachev and Maxim Spiridonov. The last three formed the top line, while Dallman and Kloucek were the first defensive pair. That quintet dominated for Barys in the club’s first two seasons as the team twice reached the playoffs but was swept both times by eventual champion Ak Bars.
03.09.2008 KHL debut, scored in his first game
12.02.2009 Broke Fetisov’s record for scoring among defensemen
26.02.2009 Most productive defenseman in the KHL’s first season
26.02.2012 Led the KHL in scoring from defense for the second time
“To be honest, I never imaged that I would end up so far from home,” said Dallman in a 2008 interview with Barys’ official site. “I like the team, the people on the staff, everyone at our club. In addition, I’ve always enjoyed the chance to visit new countries, get to know different cultures.”
“Kevin is one of our leaders, not only on the ice but also in the locker room. We weren’t mistaken when we invited him to our team. We’re happy that as well as contributing to the offense, he is solid on defense,” the club’s then president Nurlan Orazbayev said in an interview with KHL.ru.
Outscoring Fetisov
From his first games in the KHL, Dallman caught the eye of fans, team-mates, coaches, commentators and journalists. He barely went a game without producing a goal or an assist. There was even a hat-trick, on the road at CSKA on Oct. 8. In his first season in the KHL, Dallman had 58 (28+30) points in 53 games – a career-best return. There were at least two days that the Canadian defenseman will surely remember for a long time.
The first was Jan. 26, 2009. On that day, Barys edged Amur 5-4 in a shoot-out, and Dallman was one of the goalscorers. It was his 23rd of the season, setting a new record for defensemen in a single Russian or Soviet season. The previous record was just one year old: Oleg Piganovich scored 22 for Traktor in the 2007-2008 campaign. Piganovich broke Nikolai Makarov’s record, that stood since 1982.
The second came on Feb. 12, 2009. Despite a 1-3 loss on the road at Traktor, Dallman’s goal took him to 50 points for the season and moved him past Vyacheslav Fetisov’s record for points from a defenseman in a single season. Fetisov set his mark in 1983-1984. Dallman took part in the first ever KHL All-Star Game, played on Red Square, after he was voted into the starting line-up by fans. That was the first of seven All-Star appearances.
Dallman’s first spell in Kazakhstan lasted four seasons. The team did not manage any great success. Although it reached the playoffs each season, it never made it past the first round. Three consecutive meetings with Ak Bars came and went without winning a single game. Then in 2012, Metallurg was the first opponent. This time, Barys was more competitive and led 3-1. But Magnitka hit back, winning three games in a row – all three in overtime – to reach the second round.
Dallman played 214 games across those four seasons, and 14 more in the playoffs. He had 192 (72+120) points, with six more in post season. It was clear that sooner or later, he would get his chance at a bigger club. In 2012, Dallman signed a two-year contract with SKA.
The KHL’s most productive defenseman
At the time, St. Petersburg was still building a title-winning team. In 2013, Dallman helped SKA to the semi-final. The following year it was all over in round two. Soon afterwards, Dallman returned to Astana and played five more seasons with Barys.
During that time, Barys twice failed to reach the playoffs, lost in the first round on one occasion and twice reached the second round. In 2017, the Kazakhs beat Traktor in six games, but were then swept by Metallurg. In 2019, a 4-3 success against Torpedo was followed by a 1-4 loss against Avangard.
05.06.2012 Signed a contract with SKA
01.05.2014 Returned to Barys
05.08.2019 Announced his retirement
18.05.2022 Included in the KHL’s 15th anniversary symbolic team
Most productive KHL D-man 431 points in 620 games
MVP 2013
Top-scoring defenseman 2009, 2012
KHL All-Star 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2016, 2018
Gentleman on the ice award 2013
Member of the 15th anniversary Golden Team 2023
Dallman was always an effective performer. He regularly featured for Team Kazakhstan after securing Kazakh citizenship – something that was on the cards even during his first season in KHL. Therefore it was hardly surprising that Dallman was a fan favorite.
But time passes. Dallman’s last season was less impressive than before. There was a good reason for this, of course, as age slows even the greatest players. It was time to hang them up and at the age of 38 Dallman discreetly left the scene.
“I’m announcing my retirement,” the defenseman wrote on his social networks on Aug. 5, 2019.
The announcement was followed by words of gratitude. Dallman thought long and hard about returning for one more season, but a few days before his statement he informed the club that he wouldn’t be signing a new deal.
On Dec. 1 2019, before a game against Dinamo Minsk, Barys celebrated the club’s 20th anniversary by raising the sweaters of its seven best players. Dallman, of course, was among them, and he flew in from Canada to be a part of the celebration. That speaks volumes about the effort he put in to develop both the club and Kazakh hockey in general.
Dallman does not only hold the scoring records for a single season. He is also the most productive blue liner in KHL history, with 431 (142+289) points in 620 games. That earned him a spot in the league’s 15th anniversary symbolic line-up. That is perhaps the most eloquent testimony to his work in representing and developing the league.
“I talk with the fans every day,” Dallman to INSPORT. “They are genuinely interested in how things are with me and my family. And that’s really nice. I never had that kind of relationship with any other team. It’s really very touching. I don’t have the words to thank them for this. Talking about it right now, gives me goosebumps.”
In Dec. 2022, the KHL published a review of the best goals scored by defensemen in the league. Dallman was in first place.
“Kevin Dallman was a real find for the league,” president Alexei Morozov said in an interview with KHL.ru.
Dossier
Kevin Dallman
Born Feb. 26, 1981 in Niagara Falls, Canada
Playing career: Guelph Storm (1998-2002); Providence Bruins (2002-2005); Boston Bruins (2005); St Louis Blues (2005/06); LA Kings (2006-2008); Manchester Monarchs (2006-2008); Barys (2008-12, 2014-19); SKA (2012-14).
