1-On-1: with Cameron Hebig

Roadrunners Forward Cameron Hebig joined Jonathon Schaffer and Kim Cota-Robles on this week’s Insider Podcast. To learn more about Cameron’s offseason on his uncle’s farm and what books he has been reading as of late, download the full show below.

Listen to “Book Club With Cameron” on Spreaker.

Cam, you had your best season statistically with Tucson in 2023-24 while battling as a team for the first-place spot in the Pacific Division. Tell us how that all was for you.

When I look back at the season, I think of making playoffs and of the strong year we had finishing second and getting that high seed. Every year has its own challenges and you always learn something new. For me, it was some patience and always trying to be ready for when I got in the lineup. When I did, I just wanted to make the most of it. It was a good group and a lot of fun last year: I played with a lot of great players. The first-round exit was a sting, but we can learn from that and go on into next year.

Going into 2024-25, you need to play 57 games to tie the all-time record of most games played in a Roadrunners unform. With that being said, what are your goals for next season personally and professionally?

That would be pretty cool! I am entering year four with the Roadrunners now and I’ve loved it, so to get the opportunity to return here for another season is exciting. I am just going to focus game-by-game and look at it as a whole year for the team to succeed and help anyway I can.

Roadrunners Rapid Fire Questions: Cameron described the below in one word or one sentence:

You were nominated as the 2023-24 AHL’s man of the year by the Tucson Roadrunners. What does that mean for you?

That was a huge honor, I love trying to get out in the community and being with the fans and I know they really enjoy it, and I really enjoy it. I remember when I was a young kid coming up, I always looked up to the older hockey players, so if I can give back like that I want too. The fans come out and support us too, its the least we can do. Our whole team is always out at the player apparences. It’s great to get out in the community like that.

Having spent three seasons in Tucson, what do the fans mean to you here?

They are great, some of them are very dedicated and out at the games. Even when I was new and we struggled a bit, they still showed up. It’s great to have the energy on a Tuesday night and seeing them in the community means a lot to us. They are great people and a great to chat with, so it’s been fun to get to know some of them.

You’ve had the opportunity to work under some incredible captains and great leadership in the locker room. What kind of leader do you think you are and how do you take what you’ve learned and make that your own way of leading.

Every leader is different, I think for me I am not the most vocal guy. I just go about my business and lead by example in the way I work and prepare and show up that way. Everyone has different things they can offer; I’ve learned a lot from different leaders over the years. Guys like Adam Cracknell or Brad Malone when I was in Bakersfield. I highly respect on how they went with their business. Seeing how those guys were and now that I am older, I would want one of those guys to be teaching me if I was younger again. That’s what I try to be for these guys and if I can help in any way, I am happy to do that.

This past offseason, we were able to bring a lot of the core guys back and others who came to us last season. With the new veterans that we have signed and the prospects coming in, what does this 2024-25 team look like?

Every year there is always turnover with new faces, but management has done a good job with just having good character guys. That is huge for a dressing room; it’s great to have the second-year guys returning with the new faces. I don’t know all of them personally, but I have heard nothing but great things about them. It’s exciting to come back to familiar and new faces. I know we are all working towards the same goals for the same things; a lot of them bring different things to the table and I think it meshes well. We’re going to have a successful year here.