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About Brett Friedlander

Brett Friedlander became a hockey fan in the heart of the deep south in the early 1970s. He became hooked the first time his father, a charter Atlanta Flames season-ticket holder, took him to a game at The Omni. His first job covering hockey was with the Annapolis Capital, where he covered the Washington Capitals and learned to do an uncanny imitation of coach Bryan Murray from 1984-93.

He's also covered the Carolina Hurricanes and Fayetteville FireAntz of the Southern Professional Hockey League for the Fayetteville (N.C.) Observer. He has also been a regular contributor to Rinkside magazine and Faceoff.com. The highlight of his writing career came on June 19,2006, when the Hurricanes beat the Edmonton Oilers in Game 7 to win the Stanley Cup. His first book, "Chasing Moonlight: The True Story of Field of Dreams' Doc Graham" was released by John F. Blair, Publisher, in April 2009.

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Staal’s captaincy gets off to a strong start Print
Southeast
Written by Brett Friedlander   
Friday, January 22, 2010 20:50
Southeast Division notebook:

Rod Brind’Amour showed what it’s like to be a leader when he gracefully removed the “C” he’s been wearing on his Carolina Hurricanes sweater for the past 4½ seasons and handed it over to teammate Eric Staal.

Staal then showed what kind of leader he has the potential to be by going out and scoring a hat trick in his first game as the new leader of a struggling team.

It was the kind of performance that reinforced general manager Jim Rutherford’s decision to make the transition now, rather than waiting until Brind’Amour’s expected retirement at the end of the season, to pass to torch to the Hurricanes’ young star.

“It’s something we were planning on doing at some point in time, not knowing exactly when that would be,” Rutherford said. “I’ve had a couple of conversations with Rod over the last month or two just to see how he’s doing in the overall scheme of things.”

Rutherford said he gave Brind’Amour the option to nix the move and remain the Hurricanes’ captain, but in the best interests of the team, he decided not to do that.

In the end, the change in leadership wasn’t an indictment of the 39-year-old Brind’Amour – although his on-ice skills are clearly eroding – as much as it was a way of Carolina looking to get a head start on its future.

The Hurricanes are currently last in the Eastern Conference and would need a miracle to get into the playoffs this season.

“The reason for now is that this would be the best time for somebody to understand what it takes to be a captain, when you’re in as bad a times as we’re in,” Rutherford said. “I really feel very strong that doing it at this point, when we’ve started our rebuilding of our team, is to give it to the guy who is going to lead this team for the next several years.”

Staal, who becomes the Hurricanes’ fifth captain since moving south from Hartford in 1997, said he plans to lean heavily on Brind’Amour while he's learning the ropes.

“The relationship between Rod and I isn’t going to change,” he said. “I don’t think I’m a guy who will be standing up and giving 'rah-rah' speeches in the dressing room. That’s not me. That doesn’t necessarily make you a great leader. It’s knowing the right times when something needs to be done and making sure your play on the ice is what guys will follow.”

Scoring three goals in your first game with the “C” is a good way to start.

Although he got off to a slow start and missed several games because of injuries, Staal is second on the team with 33 points.

ATLANTA

G Kari Lehtonen, the Thrashers’ all-time leader in games (204), wins (94), shutouts (14) and save percentage (.912), moved another step closer to returning to the ice when he was assigned to the Chicago Wolves of the AHL for a conditioning assignment. The 26-year-old hasn’t played a game this season because of two surgeries on his knee. There is no timetable for how long he will be in Chicago before being recalled by the Thrashers. Veteran Johan Hedberg and rookie Ondrej Pavelec have been sharing the goaltending duties in Lehtonen’s absence. … Evander Kane’s goal against Toronto on Tuesday was his first in eight games. C Todd White has missed five straight games while D Christoph Schubert has missed three straight, both with knee injuries.

FLORIDA

The Panthers have scored just 20 goals in their last nine games (an average of just over two per game), and have been shut out twice during that stretch, but they are still 5-3-1 during that stretch and are just three points behind the Islanders and Bruins for the Eastern Conference’s final playoff spot. … Teenage defenseman Dmitry Kulikov returned to the lineup Thursday against Islanders after missing 14 games with a knee injury. … G Tomas Vokoun has been particularly strong recently. Against Atlanta on Monday, he posted his fifth shutout of the season in beating the Thrashers 1-0. Gregory Campbell scored the game’s only goal midway through the second period. Jason Garrison earned an assist, the first of his career in his 17th NHL game.

TAMPA BAY

According to multiple sources, including the Sports Business Journal, the Lightning’s ownership group defaulted on a loan payment to the team’s former owners and had to rely on an advance from the NHL on its revenue-sharing money so that it could make payroll. Current team co-owners Len Barrie and Owen Koules have been at odds for months and are in the process of trying to bring in new investors. If the situation isn’t resolved by Feb. 15, ownership will revert back to Palace Sports & Entertainment. The Lightning can then be packaged with the Detroit Pistons and PS&E’s other properties that are also in the process of being sold, throwing the future of the team into doubt. … The Lightning claimed center Nate Thompson off waivers from the New York Islanders. In 39 games this season for the Islanders, Thompson had one goal and five assists. He hasn’t played since Jan. 9. … With a power-play goal by Martin St. Louis on Thursday against Toronto, Tampa Bay won its first overtime game since Nov. 22 and improved to 3-10 in overtime games this season.

WASHINGTON

D John Carlson thought he had his first career point when he was awarded an assist on Eric Fehr’s second-period goal against Pittsburgh on Thursday. It was taken away shortly thereafter, however, and instead awarded to teammate Shaone Morrisonn. The 22-year-old Carlson, who was called up from AHL Hershey earlier in the day, didn’t get upset about the scoring change. He simply went out and got an assist that counted, this time on the game-winner by Tomas Fleischmann in Washington’s 6-3 victory against Pittsburgh. … The game against the Penguins was the first meeting between the teams since Game 7 of last year’s Eastern Conference semifinals. Alex Ovechkin scored two goals in the game to give him 251 for his career, joining Wayne Gretzky (356), Mike Bossy (305) and Mario Lemieux (300) among players with at least 250 goals in their first five NHL seasons. … Mike Green, the top scorer among league defensemen with 50 points, sat out Thursday’s game with an unspecified injury. He has three goals and nine assists in his last nine games.

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Last Updated on Sunday, January 24, 2010 16:08