Having been let go at the end of last season and subsequently retiring, it seemed like the end of a year-and-a-half partnership between the Canadian and the Belfast Giants, but fate tends to always have a twist.
A call from former team-mate and now head coach Adam Keefe changed Rutherford’s plans of settling down.
“I’d been working with my family over the summer in land development,” Rutherford explains. “I’d also been working with the hockey academy (back home), doing skills and development for their Junior A programme.
“Honestly it all then happened by fluke! Keefer reached out to me as a joke when there were so many injuries, we talked about it, I had no real interest in coming back, but then as more and more time went on, I talked about it with my family and my girlfriend who said, ‘Why don’t you go and finish out the year, there’s only half a season left.’
“I had talked to a few teams about a few options but it was easier coming here, with Jim (Vandermeer) here and his wife Steph, I’ve grown up my whole life with them. It felt more homey so it made the transition easier.”
Rutherford has landed in Northern Ireland at exactly the right time, providing much needed injury cover with the Giants missing forward trio Dustin Johner, John Kurtz and Jonathan Ferland, the latter of whom is suspended.
The 30-year old is a consistent points producer - he scored 57 points in 60 games for the Giants in his last stint - and has already made an immediate impact on his return to the roster.
In just his second game since arriving in Belfast, Rutherford proved the difference between the Giants and the Cardiff Devils, firing past Ben Bowns in a thrilling shootout win in Wales on Sunday.
To say he’s happy would be an understatement, but the Ladner native believes that there’s a lot more to come from him in teal this year.
“I really wanted the opportunity to shoot again because I knew I wasn’t going to miss twice,” the forward states confidently. “Penalty shots are one of the things I enjoy most so when it went to extra frames again I asked Keefer for the chance to finish it.
“To be honest, all weekend everything just felt a bit off. I felt a step behind everyone - stick-handling, skating, speed, everything. But I’m going to be working as hard as I can Monday to Friday to get to where I need to be.”
The baptism of fire continues this weekend - while the rest of the roster have seen both Milton Keynes and Guildford earlier this season, Rutherford will be getting his first experience of the Elite League newbies.
It’s the third game of Belfast’s remarkable ten-game road trip, and another weekend like their four point haul against Coventry and Cardiff would be the ideal result for Adam Keefe’s men.
But for Rutherford, it’s a chance to catch up with a former team-mate in former Giants defenseman Matt Nickerson, now plying his trade for the impressive Lightning.
“I think a lot of guys underestimated them when they came into the league,” Rutherford says. “Milton Keynes has only lost one home game this season so they’re doing things right over there.
“It’ll also be interesting playing against Nicker - the last time I got to play against him was when I was at Edinburgh and we talked a lot of c*** so I’m excited to play against the big man again!
“But we need to be prepared and have a good practice tomorrow so we’re ready to ramp it up (on Saturday).”
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