By Shane Frederick
MANKATO — Tim Jackman watched the 10- and 11-year-old hockey players battling in front of a goal during camp last week at All Seasons Arena.
At that level, kids aren’t supposed to hit each other yet, but when one player cross-checked another and knocked him to the ice to prevent a goal-scoring opportunity, Jackman, a Minnesota State hockey alum, couldn’t contain a big smile.
As far a Jackman’s concerned, a little physical play never hurt anybody. For him, it helped secure a cozy home in the National Hockey League.
“You gotta find a way to separate yourself from the other guys out there,” the New York Islanders forward said.
Jackman established career highs in several categories last season, playing in 69 NHL games, compiling five goals and seven assists for 12 points, averaging nearly 12 minutes per game and racking up 155 minutes in penalties, including several fighting majors.
“I’m a fourth-line guy,” Jackman said in between camp sessions Thursday afternoon. “I just go out there and play with energy. I have to be prepared to play.”
In March, the Islanders rewarded the 27-year-old with a one-year contract extension worth a reported $550,000. What’s significant about the contract is that it’s Jackman’s first one-way deal, meaning New York has to pay him his full salary whether he’s with the big club or in the minors.
That security was a long time coming for Jackman.
While Jackman was the first Minnesota State player to be drafted by an NHL team and the first to play in an NHL game, his rise hasn’t been as quick as other alumni like David Backes, a budding star for the St. Louis Blues and a likely Olympian next year, or Ryan Carter of the Anaheim Ducks, who already has his name engraved on the Stanley Cup.
After two years with the Mavericks, Jackman turned pro in the summer 2002. In 2003-04, he played in 19 games with the team that drafted him, Columbus Blue Jackets, but he didn’t stay around Ohio very long. Jackman toiled with Columbus’ top minor-league club, the Syracuse Crunch, for the better part of three seasons, including the lockout season of 2004-05.
He was traded to the Phoenix Coyotes and, later, to the Los Angeles Kings but got just a couple of cups of coffee with those teams, playing in eight games with the former in 2005-06 and five with the latter the next season.
“There was a time when I thought I wouldn’t play in the NHL again,” said Jackman, who was a second-round pick and the 38th overall selection after his freshman season at Minnesota State.
The 6-foot-4, 210-pound Jackman signed as a free agent with the Islanders before the 2007-08 season and was having an excellent season with their American Hockey League affiliate, the Bridgeport Sound Tigers — 15 goals and 36 points in 44 games — before getting called up.
He’s only been sent back to Bridgeport a couple of times since then, but not because he can put up points as much as he’s willing to put up his dukes.
Jackman’s become one of the Islanders’ tough guys.
Jackman not only led New York in penalty minutes and hits (151) last season, but the Web site hockeyfights.com reported that Jackman got in 19 fights.
“Fighting separated me from other players,” said Jackman, adding that he’s also working with skating and stickhandling instructors in order to improve other areas of his game. “When you get a chance to play, you have to make the most of it. ... I got my foot in the door. I hope I can become an all-around player.”
In a press release announcing Jackman’s contract extension, Islanders general manager Garth Snow said: “Tim earned this extension by showing his willingness to do whatever is necessary to help the Islanders succeed. We know Tim is excited about being an Islander next season, and we’re just as excited to have him back.”
Jackman, who has a home in Anoka, was one of five MSU alumni who played in the NHL last season, along with Backes (82 games) and Steve Wagner (22) in St. Louis, (22), Carter (48) in Anaheim and Jon Kalinski (12) in Philadelphia.
“I’m very fortunate,” Jackman said. “I’m very lucky that it all worked out.”
