GLENDALE , Ariz. — Thursday was the first day of the rest of Dominic Moore’s interrupted hockey life. And it was the first of many the 33-year-old Rangers center said he would cherish.
“I have nothing but appreciation for being able to play again and be back as part of the team, especially this team,” Moore told The Post following the morning skate in advance of Thursday’s opener against the Coyotes. “I’m obviously excited, but at the same time there’s some element of uncertainty regarding how things are going to go, but that’s totally expected.
“All my feelings are kind of hard to describe, to be honest. I guess in a sense I compartmentalize.”
Moore was making his return to the NHL ice after more than a year away from the game after losing his wife, Katie, to a rare form of liver cancer. The center left the Sharks following Game 3 of the Western Conference quarterfinals on April 16, 2012 to be with his wife, who had been recently diagnosed. She died on Jan. 7, 2013.
“Obviously I would love for my wife to be here watching me play,” Moore said after taking a moment when asked whether his excitement was tempered by a touch of melancholy. “That part is difficult.
“But Katie was someone who embraced every day. That’s how she appreciated and enjoyed life and that’s how I’m living my life.
“I’ve always been that way, but she would go through life with a smile on her face every day, where I tend to be more intense,” Moore added. “There’s a subtle difference.”
Moore earned a spot centering the Rangers’ fourth line off a strong training camp that impressed coach Alain Vigneault.
“Usually I keep one-on-one conversations with players between us, but I met with Dominic [on Wednesday] and told him I was extremely pleased with his training camp,” Vigneault said. “With him not having played for a full year and what he went through, even though I feel he’s going to get better and isn’t yet where he can be, it was very impressive.”
Moore, who has made a career as a checking center who kills penalties and is reliable at the faceoff dots, said he expects to improve as the season evolves. But improving always has been a primary objective.
“I’ve played deep into the playoffs, so I understand how intense it gets on the ice, and I’m ready for that,” he said. “I don’t think from that standpoint anything has changed with me being out for a year.
“My focus is on getting better and better every day. That’s what I’ve prided myself on through my entire career and I think that’s one of the reasons I’ve been able to play in the league as long as I have,” the seven-year veteran said. “I think having the mentality of constantly seeking to improve is a feather in my cap.”
Dominic and Katie Moore met as undergraduates at Harvard, where he played from 1999-2003. He remains extremely close to his mother-in-law.
“Katie was an only child, and she lost her father less than a year [before she died],” Moore said. “I talk to Joyce [her mother] almost every day.
“She’s a big fan and loves to watch.”
Moore began his career as a Ranger with a three-assist performance in Montreal on Nov. 1, 2003. Following a five-game cameo that season, he played his rookie season in New York in 2005-06 centering Ryan Hollweg and Jed Ortmeyer on the effective and popular HMO Line.
But he was traded to Nashville for Adam Hall after the season, thus beginning an odyssey on which he has played for nine teams over the course of his career, having been traded six times.
“If I had had my say, I’d have never left New York, but that’s the way the world works,” Moore said. “There’s a lot outside of your control.
“I wouldn’t wish being traded that many times on my worst enemy, but at the same time, those are experiences that have made me a stronger person.
“You play the cards you’re dealt and do the best you can. At the end of the day, that’s what it’s about.”