By: Neil Simmons | Follow me on Twitter / X: @NSimmz
Hundreds of hockey players have donned the iconic Boston Bruins Spoked B sweater throughout the team’s first century in the NHL. Some played night in and night out for over a decade and became franchise icons with the Black and Gold. Others, like Dominic Moore, only spent a season in Boston. A defensively responsible center with a knack for the big goal, Moore was wanted all over the league. He forged a vagabond-like career that almost annually saw him on the move at the trade deadline.
Moore was drafted 95th overall by the New York Rangers in the 2000 NHL Draft, following his freshman season with the Harvard Crimson. Moore played four seasons in Cambridge, scoring 151 points in 124 games and making an NCAA tournament appearance in 2002. Moore and his brothers Mark and Steve made history by becoming the first sibling trio to skate on the same Crimson team during Dominic’s freshman year in 1999-2000.
Following graduation, Moore joined the Rangers organization and started the 2003-04 season with the Hartford Wolf Pack, New York’s AHL affiliate. Moore made his NHL debut in November of that season and recorded three assists, the first Rangers rookie to do so since 1938. Moore would see five games of NHL action before finishing the season in Hartford and then playing the 2004-05 season in the AHL due to the Lockout.
Finally breaking into the Rangers lineup full time, Moore played in all 82 games for New York in the 2005-06 season, contributing nine goals and 18 points in a primarily defensive role, before being dealt to Pittsburgh that summer. Moore’s tenure with the Penguins lasted less than a year, as he was dealt to the Minnesota Wild at the trade deadline and fully embarked on a journeyman career.
After 40 games spread across 11 months with Minnesota, the Toronto Maple Leafs claimed Moore off waivers. Moore began to find his footing in the NHL as a member of the Leafs, dressing in 101 games for the team and recording 55 points. Sitting at a career-high 41 points at the deadline in 2009, Moore found himself on the move again, this time to the Buffalo Sabres. His final scoring totals of 13 goals and 45 points would be the highest output of his career.
Moore started the 2009-10 season with the Florida Panthers and was dealt to Montreal at the deadline. He proved to be a vital acquisition for the Canadiens, who entered the postseason as the eighth seed in the East but stunned the hockey world with a deep playoff run. Montreal overcame a 3-1 series deficit to upset the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Washington Capitals in the first round, with Moore scoring the series-clinching goal.
Moore cashed in on his playoff performance and signed a two-year deal with the Tampa Bay Lightning. Recording a career-high 18 goals with Tampa’s high-flying offense, Moore embarked on his second stunning playoff run in as many years. Much like the prior year, Moore’s team eliminated the Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals to advance to the conference final, this time bowing out to the Boston Bruins in seven games. Moore finished the 2011 playoffs with a career-high 11 points.
Moore was on the move again the following year, with Tampa floundering in the standings and San Jose looking for defensive reinforcements. San Jose marked Moore’s 9th NHL club in six seasons. His tenure with the Sharks was short-lived, as he departed the team for personal reasons during the postseason and elected to sit out the following season entirely.
After a year off from hockey, Moore’s career came full circle when he signed for a second stint with the New York Rangers. Once again proving to be a vital asset for his defensive skills, Moore and the Rangers made it to the Stanley Cup Final. Against the Montreal Canadiens in the conference final, Moore scored the series-clinching goal for New York, breaking a 0-0 deadlock late in game six.
Moore spent two additional seasons with New York before signing a one-year deal with the Boston Bruins, his 10th NHL team. His brief tenure with Boston was a pseudo-homecoming for the Harvard alum, who still resided in Cambridge during the offseason. Moore brought scoring depth and stability to the Bruins’ bottom six, two areas the team needed badly after two straight years out of the playoffs. Moore chipped in 11 goals and 25 points, including a career-high three shorthanded goals, as the Bruins successfully clinched a playoff berth.
On the move again, Moore signed for a second go around with the burgeoning Maple Leafs in the 2017 offseason. In 50 games with Toronto in the 2017-18 season, Moore chipped in 12 points. Unsigned well into the following year, Moore signed with the ZSC Lions in Switzerland, playing just 11 games before calling it a career and returning home. Moore finished his NHL career with 106 goals and 282 points in 897 games across 13 seasons with ten franchises.
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