He then moved to North America to play for the Omaha Lancers of the United States Hockey League (USHL) in the 2005–06 season.

[citation needed] On 12 April 2012, Hanzal scored the game-winning goal in overtime of Game 1 of the Western Conference Quarterfinals of the 2012 Stanley Cup playoffs against the Chicago Blackhawks, giving the Coyotes a 3–2 victory and a 1–0 series lead.

His goal came from a redirect of a shot from the blueline by teammate Adrian Aucoin past Blackhawks goaltender Corey Crawford.

[4] On 1 July 2017, Hanzal as a first time free agent, signed a three-year, $14.25 million contract with the Dallas Stars.

Approaching the final push for the post-season, on 9 March 2018, it was announced that Hanzal was ruled out for the remainder of the season to undergo a spinal fusion surgery to correct a persistent back injury with a recovery of six to seven months.

[6] With his contract concluded with the Stars during the July pause in the 2019–20 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Hanzal having earlier returned to continue his rehabilitation in the Czech Republic, opted to continue his playing career by making a return with newly formed club, HC Samson České Budějovice at the Regional Hockey tier to begin the 2020–21 season.