SLAM! Sports
SLAM! Hockey
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
COLUMNS
NHL
The Teams
Full Schedule
Monthly Schedule
Standings
Statistics
Rosters
Injury list
Movement
Trades
Hits Gallery
INTERACTIVE
JUNIOR
MORE HOCKEY
ALSO ON SLAM!
Wednesday, April 5, 2000
Brashear returns to Canucks lineup
VANCOUVER (CP) -- The big grin on Donald Brashear's face said it all."It felt great," said Brashear, who returned to the lineup in the Vancouver Canucks 1-1 draw with the Los Angels Kings on Wednesday night after missing 20 games following a brutal slash from Marty McSorley.
"It felt good to get out there and do my job and help the team."
Brashear received a huge cheer from the crowd of 17,257 at GM Place and the overhead screen flashed "Welcome back Brash" when he stepped out onto the ice for his first shift just minutes into the first period.
"It felt a little weird," said Brashear, who said he wasn't nervous.
"I think it's normal it took me a couple of shifts to get in there. I felt great."
The big left-winger played on a line with Brad May while Denis Pederson and Matt Cooke rotated as centre. He showed no hesitation in throwing his weight around, slamming Los Angeles' Craig Johnson into the boards on his first shift.
"The first hit is always the best," he laughed.
In the second period he left Jason Blake crumbled against the boards after a clean hit. Blake struggled to regain his feet then slowly made his way to the Kings bench.
Brashear ended the night playing 9:32 on 11 shifts. He wasn't credited with a shot on goal but had four hits.
Coach Marc Crawford liked what he saw from Brashear.
"He played hard for a guy who hasn't played for six weeks," said Crawford.
"He played the way he has to play to be affective. He played physical, finished his checks and took the puck deep. He'll just get better with each shift he takes."
The native of Bedford, Ind., who lives in Montreal in the off-season, had been sidelined since Feb. 21 after suffering a Grade 3 concussion when bashed on the helmet by a brutal two-handed swing by McSorley. The Bruins defenceman was suspended for the rest of this season and faces a criminal assault trial in Vancouver starting Oct. 2.
Brashear had practised with the team for the last couple of weeks and was cleared by doctors to return to play.
He was bare-headed during the pre-game warmups but wore a new, tighter-fitting helmet that has extra padding during the game started.
Despite being one of the most feared fighters in the league, the six-foot-two, 225-pound Brashear can use his hands for more than punches. He's an accomplished piano player and was enjoying his best season ever with a career-high 11 goals, including three game winners, prior to his injury.
 Bert's back on blades Blue Jays boot game Bombers drop Peterson Felicien rebuilds race | Visit our Polls Archive |