next eight, Dawes was sent down to play with the Wolf Pack for the rest of the 2006–07 season. He returned to play in the Rangers' final game of the playoffs on May 6, 2007. Game six against the Buffalo Sabres in the Eastern Conference Semifinals was Dawes's first NHL playoff game. While Dawes was trying to block a shot, the first Sabres goal deflected off of his body to go into the net past goalie Henrik Lundqvist. The Rangers lost the game 5–4 to lose the series 4–2. Dawes recorded his first NHL assist in the 2007–08 season. Dawes had become a good shootout option for the Rangers, scoring four times on seven attempts at that point. During regular play, played as high as the second line at points during the 2007–08 season. On July 16, 2008, Dawes re-signed with the Rangers to a one-year, $587,500 contract. On March 4, 2009, Dawes was traded to the Phoenix Coyotes along with Dmitri Kalinin and Petr Průcha for Derek Morris. On July 16, 2009, Dawes was claimed off waivers by the Calgary Flames. On September 8, 2010, Dawes signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Atlanta Thrashers worth $600,000 in the NHL and $105,000 in the American Hockey League (AHL). He was traded on February 24, 2011, to the Montreal Canadiens, along with Brent Sopel for Ben Maxwell and a 4th-round pick in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft. On May 31, 2011, Dawes left the NHL and signed a one-year contract with Kazakhstan-based Barys Astana of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). He continued the relationship through the 2017–18 season. On July 14, 2020, Dawes as a free agent and the fifth leading scorer in KHL history extended his tenure in Russia, signing a one-year contract with Ak Bars Kazan. On June 11, 2021, Dawes signed a two-year contract with Adler Mannheim of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL). International play Dawes played for Canada in the 2004 and 2005 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, winning silver and gold medals, respectively. In 2004, Dawes led all players with six goals to go along with five assists in six games, tying for first with 11 points. Two goals and one assist came in the gold medal game against the United States, after which Dawes was named as Canada's player of the game. He registered two goals and four assists in six games in 2005.