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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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Ward's reward was a long time coming Print
Southeast
Written by Brett Friedlander   
Friday, January 14, 2011 13:34

Cam Ward could finally call himself an All-Star this week. He's more than a sentimental favorite getting the nod in his own building – the Carolina backstop is second in the NHL in saves.

Brett Friedlander Cam Ward would never come right out and say it. That’s not his style.

But it was clear from his excitement over his first All-Star selection – for a game played in his own building, in front of his own fans – that this was an honor the Carolina Hurricanes’ goalie really wanted.

“It’s pretty special when you get all the best players in the league under one roof and be able to have a fun couple days,” he said upon learning that
AROUND THE SOUTHEAST
he and Hurricanes captain Eric Staal would be representing their team at the RBC Center on Jan. 30. “I’m not really concerned about how many goals I let in. Hopefully I can mix in a few saves. Really, I’m just excited to be named.

“To be able to consider yourself an All-Star in your career is pretty neat. It’s something that will now always be on my resume and will forever be with me.”

This from a player who just a week earlier was quoted as saying he didn’t “need somebody to tell me I’m an All-Star for me to believe I’m an All-Star.”

With or without the official recognition, Ward has been among the NHL’s hottest goalies of late.

He was 6-4-1 with a .943 save percentage in December and he ranks second in the NHL to Anaheim’s Jonas Hiller in total saves. Despite giving up five goals in a shootout win against Calgary on Tuesday, his .925 save percentage is also among the league’s best.

“He’s always been a special goaltender in my opinion,” Carolina general manager Jim Rutherford, an old goalie himself, said of the 2006 Conn Smythe Trophy winner.

Now that Ward has actually made the All-Star team, the question becomes where and on which team he’ll be selected under the game’s new “fantasy draft” format?

“I might have to vote in my good pal Eric Staal (as one of the captains) so I can get selected a little higher than if somebody else is choosing it,” Ward joked. “But it’s an interesting way to change the All-Star Game. I think it’s going to create more of a fun experience and maybe make it a little more competitive. I don’t really care what side I’m on, I just happy to be going.”

In addition to Carolina’s Ward and Staal, the other All-Star selections from the Southeast Division are Atlanta defensemen Dustin Byfuglien and Tobias Enstrom, Tampa Bay forwards Steven Stamkos and Martin St. Louis, and Washington forward Alexander Ovechkin and defenseman Mike Green.

Although Florida doesn’t have a representative in the main game, right wing Evgeni Dadonov was chosen to participate along with several other rookies – including Carolina’s Jeff Skinner – in the Honda NHL SuperSkills competition.

Notes

Dwayne Roloson sure knows how to make a good impression on new teammates. In his first game as a member of the Tampa Bay Lightning, the veteran goalie shut out the high-powered Washington Capitals 1-0 in overtime to lift his team into first place in the division. Then on Wednesday, he came back and did it again – blanking the same Capitals 3-0 in his home debut to put the Lightning back into the Southeastern lead. … Mike Smith, who has been out since Dec. 20 with a knee injury, is back on the ice working out again. With Roloson having won three of his first four starts, Tampa Bay is in no hurry rushing him back. … Stamkos’ six-game scoring drought since Dec. 30 matches his longest of the season for the Lightning. … After converting just 12 of its first 136 power play opportunities this season for a league-worst 10.6 percent success rate, the Florida Panthers scored three times with the man advantage Tuesday, including Dennis Wideman’s game-winner in overtime, for a 4-3 win against Washington. … Goalie Tomas Vokoun’s future with the Panthers will likely depend on whether he and the team are able to work out a contract extension before the Feb. 28 trade deadline. Vokoun, who is 16-15-1 with five shutouts and a goals-against average of 2.56, is in the final season of a deal that pays him $6.3 million. … The Atlanta Thrashers placed forward Evander Kane on injured reserve with an undisclosed injury and recalled Tim Stapleton and Spencer Machacek. Kane has 13 goals and 26 points in 40 games. … Thrashers forward Ben Eager has been suspended for four games for sucker-punching Toronto’s Colby Armstrong in Atlanta’s 9-3 loss to the Maple Leafs last week. … One reason for Washington’s latest scoring drought may have something to do with the absence of Alexander Semin, who did not accompany the team on its road trip last week because of a thigh injury. Defenseman Tom Poti is also out of action with a variety of injuries. … Eighteen-year-old Skinner, the league’s youngest player, continues his push for Calder Trophy consideration by posting six goals and two assists during a 6-0-2 stretch that has helped lift the Carolina Hurricanes to ninth in the Eastern Conference standings. … Despite scoring his first two NHL goals in seven games since Jan. 1, rookie F Zac Dalpe has been returned to Charlotte of the AHL.

Photos by Getty Images

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Last Updated on Friday, January 14, 2011 13:59