Jamie Schaafsma aptly describes his season as a roller-coaster.

And, like any good thrill ride, it put a huge smile on his face by the end.  The Blenheim native worried early in the season his playing career might be over.

Those fears were long gone by the time he won the playoff MVP award for leading the Allen Americans to a second straight Central Hockey League championship.

“It’s part of hockey,” said Schaafsma, 31. “You go through ups and downs.

“It’s always nice when you end the season with a win. And then to get the MVP, it was such an honour. We have a lot of players who played well. To be on a team that wins two years in a row and win MVP, it was very fulfilling.”

He’s now home in Chatham after driving back from Texas with his wife, Nicole, and their two children: daughter Sawyer, who turns three in July, and 20-month-old son Sutter.

Most of their boxes are unpacked, but the MVP award wasn’t in them. It’ll be coming in the mail.

When it arrives, Schaafsma will give the prize to his parents, Stuart and Florence.  “They put in all the money and time for me when I was younger,” he said.

Schaafsma led the Americans in playoff scoring and ranked third in the CHL with 20 points in 17 games.  He scored in four of five games in the final while picking up nine points.

The Americans are only the third team in CHL history to win back-to-back championships.

Their roster isn’t filled with stars, Schaafsma said. They had only one player in the top 15 in regular-season scoring. They relied on a group of hard-working players who bought into their system and played well end to end.

“It says a lot to be able to win back-to-back,” Schaafsma said. “Good organization, good coaches and good players.”

He’s been to six consecutive finals – three in Italy, two in the CHL and one in the International Hockey League with the Flint Generals – and won three titles. That makes for a short summer, but Schaafsma won’t complain.

“That’s just the nature of the beast,” he said. “It’s been six years I’ve been in the final. It’s crazy. It just makes for a much longer season, but I just enjoy the success. I don’t handle losing very well. I’ll take the nice long seasons.”

He suffered groin and hip injuries in last year’s final. The pain lingered into the summer, making it difficult for him to even walk around his house or climb stairs. He began rehab too late in the summer to be 100% healthy for opening day. That hurt his production – he scored only once in the first 19 games.

“At the beginning of the year, I struggled,” Schaafsma said. “I was hurt from last year still and I really struggled to get back from that injury. I thought, ‘Uh oh, hockey could be over.’ I kind of panicked.”

Fortunately, head coach Steve Martinson had faith in the 10-year pro. “He believed in me,” Schaafsma said. “And then things kind of turned around. I started playing much better.”

He scored 12 goals in his final 17 games to finish with 21-34-55 totals in 61 games. He was fourth on the Americans and tied for 20th in the league in scoring.

Then, of course, came the magical playoff run.

“It doesn’t really matter how you start, it’s how you finish,” he said, breaking into laughter.

Schaafsma doesn’t think his career is finished. He’d like to return to Allen, but he’ll listen to other teams’ offers for next season.

He’s also begun thinking about life after hockey. “I’ve basically played hockey for 10 years, so I don’t have a fallback plan,” he said.

He’s taking a firefighting course with help from the Professional Hockey Players’ Association. His nose will be buried in a 1,200-page textbook until six weeks of hands-on lessons begin this summer. Schaafsma said he’s always been interested in firefighting. The team-oriented job appeals to his hockey background.

“If I can get a job as a Chatham firefighter right away, then I’d probably consider quitting hockey,” he said. “It’d be hard to turn down.”

But, he added, “I’d like to maybe coach, too, but you never know what opportunities you’re going to get or not going to get. I’d like to keep my options open.”