On Thursday, former Dallas Stars forward Shawn Horcoff celebrates his 48th birthday. The now NHL executive recorded 18 goals and 31 assists for 49 points in 153 games during a brief stint with Dallas between 2013 and 2015, a stretch late in his playing career that carries a fun bit of relevance today.
Horcoff now sits alongside general managers around the league, including the man who brought him to Dallas in the first place in Jim Nill. The Trail, British Columbia native is currently running the Detroit Red Wings‘ hockey operations department as interim general manager, following the team’s notable transition away from franchise icon Steve Yzerman, who had been serving as Detroit’s GM.
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Horcoff wasn’t considered a notable prospect coming up, going in the fourth round of the 1998 NHL Draft. He nonetheless carved out a lengthy NHL career, appearing in 1,008 games over parts of 15 seasons with the Oilers, Stars and Anaheim Ducks, finishing with 186 goals, 325 assists and 511 points.
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His signature season came in 2005-06, the first year back after the lockout, when he broke out with 73 points in 79 regular-season games for Edmonton. He carried that form into the playoffs, adding 19 points in 24 postseason games as the Oilers made an improbable run all the way to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final, a series they would ultimately lose to the Carolina Hurricanes.
It was in the summer of 2013 that Horcoff landed in Dallas, acquired by a Stars front office led by Jim Nill, who had just taken over as general manager that offseason. Over parts of three seasons with the Stars, Horcoff settled into a veteran depth role, while providing experience for a young Dallas roster built around the likes of Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn.
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Horcoff played his final NHL season in 2015-16 before retiring and pivoting into management, joining the Red Wings front office in 2016-17 as director of player development. He would go on to add titles including assistant director of player personnel, general manager of Detroit’s AHL affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins, and assistant general manager of the Red Wings, before being named the team’s interim GM this past Tuesday.
That promotion has already brought Horcoff full circle with Nill in an unexpected way. Since stepping into the interim GM role, Horcoff has begun sitting in on league meetings with his fellow general managers, meaning the same executive who once acquired him as a player now shares a seat with him at the table.
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