Chris Van Duynhoven got lost but now he’s home.

After more than three seasons in the Western Hockey League came to an upsetting end last fall, the Douglas Fir-sized defenceman will play this season for the Burnaby Express of the B.C. Hockey League.

Van Duynhoven grew up in Burnaby’s Westridge area, but when he was 16 he went to live in Prince George, not to make his way in the forestry industry, but to play for the WHL’s Cougars.

At 6-foot-5 he was a desirable commodity. At first he missed being away from his parents and sisters, but after a couple of weeks he adjusted, even though Prince George had the worst travel schedule in the WHL. In his first two seasons, Van Duynhoven’s playing time was limited because the Cougars were a strong team so they favoured their veterans.

In his third season, however, the team’s fortunes had changed and the stay-at-home blueliner’s ice time wasn’t what he expected it to be because the Cougars were now in a rebuilding mode and giving more ice time to their younger players than he received at their age.

“It was topsy-turvey,” said Van Duynhoven following an Express practice at Bill Copeland Arena this week.

He went to the coaches about how he felt he needed a fresh start, and they traded him 28 games into the 2007-08 season to the Chilliwack Bruins. He was cool with that since it put him close to home and family. The last half of that season seemed to go well for him, and he was looking forward to his 19-year-old season with the Bruins, especially after they named him an assistant captain a year ago.

But just six games into the season, the Bruins call him into the office and said, “We want to rebuild, stack up on some younger players so we’re going to release you.”

Ouch.

The news put him into a state of shock. To play 212 WHL regular season and playoff games and then suddenly have the ice pulled out from underneath his skates sent him reeling. The Tri-City Americans called to offer him a spot but he declined.

“My head was a little shook up from what had happened,” said Van Duynhoven. “I wanted to make sure I was making the right decision, so I didn’t go down there right away. I told them I needed some time.”

While he mulled everything over his B.C. Hockey League rights got traded around the province like a player in a fantasy hockey pool. He started off with Surrey and ended up in Cowichan.

“They wanted me to go there, but my head was still a little shook up and I didn’t want to commit to a team when I wasn’t sure if my head was still in it and be that guy that came to a team and just didn’t want to be there,” said Van Duynhoven.

So instead he went into the first year of an electrical program at BCIT and played with a bunch of buddies from his minor hockey days with the Grandview Steelers Junior B team that plays out of the Burnaby Winter Club. He wanted to get rid of his frustration and just have fun playing hockey again, and he found it.

“I really just wanted no pressure. I just really wanted to let loose and just play hockey for fun and not have it be a business,” said Van Duynhoven.

“There’s a lot of pressure [in the WHL] that comes down to you from teammates, from coaches, from fans, from parents. It just gets to you. I didn’t want to be the guy to commit to a team and then buckle under that pressure.”

While he intends to follow in his father Neil’s footsteps and become a firefighter as well as an electrician, Van Duynhoven rediscovered his love for competitive hockey over the summer and so he decided to hook up with the Express.

“This is my last year I’m going to be able to play junior hockey. Junior hockey has been great for me and I’ve learned a lot. I didn’t want to leave not playing as a junior hockey player. I didn’t want to have any regrets when I got older,” said Van Duynhoven. “I’m totally excited about it.”

The Express have known Van Duynhoven, who had six goals, 16 assists and 213 penalty minutes in the WHL, since he tried out for them in 2005-06.

“He’s a kid with a lot of leadership and skill level. And, of course, being 6-foot-5, 240 pounds is hard to duplicate,” said Express head coach Dave McLellan, who coached him as a youth. “He’s very good with the puck. He’s strong on the puck and he’s good defensively. He’s a key component for what we’re trying to do this year.”

ggranger@burnabynewsleader.com