Getting to Know Dryden Hunt

Following a whirlwind few weeks after being claimed by the Colorado Avalanche on Oct. 20 on waivers from the New York Rangers, Dryden Hunt shared how he's settling into Denver and getting accustomed to his new team.

Prior to joining the Avalanche, the 26-year-old Cranbrook, British Columbia native totaled 41 points (13G/28A) in 168 career NHL contests with the Panthers, Arizona Coyotes and New York and has appeared in five Stanley Cup Playoff contests. Hunt has played 14 games with the Avalanche and is still searching for his first point with the club.
Where did you grow up and what was it like?
I was born in Cranbrook, but I grew up about an hour away from Cranbrook and I live in Calgary now. Growing up in a small town in Canada, hockey is pretty big. It's a lot of fun playing with your high school buddies. I didn't get seriously into it until I moved away. There were no good teams back home so I had to travel.
What was your favorite NHL team growing up?
Vancouver Canucks for sure.
Who were some of your favorite NHLers that you watched and/or admired?
They had Brendan Morrison, Todd Berttuzzi, Markus Naslund. I watched a lot of them against the Avalanche growing up, it was pretty intense.
What's your favorite sport outside of hockey?
Baseball, baseball for sure. I played baseball up until I started playing in the NHL. I'd always come home in the summers and play baseball. I don't do that anymore, but I still love it.
The Blues Jays are my favorite team for sure. They were always the team that was on the TV in Canada.
What do you like to do in your free time?
I like to spend time at the lake. I love the water and being outside. I like to golf also. I just try to stay as busy as I can in the summer to get away from hockey a little bit and just reset before the new season.
I'm really excited to be here and to explore Colorado. We actually just went and visited Red Rocks and hiked in Genesee Park. It was pretty cool up there. Definitely exciting to explore.
What career would you have pursued if you hadn't become a professional hockey player?
I feel like as you get older you start to think about that more and more. You don't necessarily want to think about it, but you should.
Hmm probably something in business. I love hockey, but I don't think I'd want to go into the hockey ops or scouting side.
What is something you can't live without?
As terrible as it is to say… my phone. I use it all the time just to keep in touch, I'm not a social media guy. I deleted Twitter a while ago. I'm still on Instagram and watch the occasional Tik Tok here or there, but I'm mostly just on it to keep in touch with everyone.
What is something people may not know about you?
Oh, I don't know, I'm not that interesting. Probably music. I'm really into music and love listening to different types of genres. I don't have a favorite type of music, honestly. I'll listen to anything. I just put it on, I could go turn on a country station and listen to some Toby Keith or something, but seriously I'll listen to anything.
I haven't gotten into vinyl [records] yet, but I just like any type of music.
How has it been getting adjusted to life in Colorado?
It's been crazy, just a complete whirlwind. I didn't even know we were going to Finland until one day I heard someone talking about it and I was like, 'Oh, we're going to Finland? Soon?' Then, I was only in Colorado for a few days and we left for the big trip, which was nice to get to know all the guys right away. We were going to dinners a bunch, which was nice because I would have been by myself a lot if we hadn't immediately gone on that big trip when I got here. I was nice to be on the road and a lot of fun, but it's nice to be back now too. My fiancee is out here now, which is nice. We've settled in now, we really love it. We love Denver and the Cherry Creek area, it's awesome.
I'm so excited that my dog is here. His name is Bogey and he's an Aussiedoodle. I never had a dog before, but now I get sad when I leave this guy. When I got picked up by the Avs, it was exciting right? But then, I was sad because I realized I had to leave the dog. It's weird because I never had a dog, but I love hanging out with him and going on rocks.
Is there any meaning behind wearing No. 22?
No, there's really not. My favorite number is actually 29, and that wasn't going to happen here ha. They originally called before we went on that trip that would take us to Europe and asked what number I wanted and then asked if I'd actually be good with taking 22 and I was like, 'Yeah, no problem.' I wore 22 when I was younger a few times so it'll be good to have it again.