Somewhat lost in the middle of the Kings destruction of the Ducks last night was a milestone for Dustin Brown. At 12:43 of the second period he tipped in a shot from Frolov and Doughty, his 100th NHL goal.That's quite an accomplishment for a guy that claims to have been a better lacrosse player than hockey player growing up.
However, he ended up playing Junior hockey in Canada after leaving his native New York. And he's found plenty of success ever since.
To celebrate his century mark in goals, let's take a look at 10 Tidbits on Brownie:
- Was selected in the first round, #13 overall, of the 2003 NHL Entry Draft. For a team that has been criticized for decades about trading away their picks, it was an odd year for the Kings. They had three first round picks. Brown was the only one pan out.
- The Guelph days - He wore #32 for his Junior team, the Storm. They also claim Dan Cloutier and Drew Doughty as former players. Brown left with 194 points (and 195 penalty minutes) in 174 games. He also left with quite a few awards - Scholastic Player of the Year all three years he was in Guelph, was voted the most popular player on the Storm in 2001-02 and was the Top Scorer in 2002-03.
- Becoming a fixture on Team USA - played twice at the World Junior Championships ('02 and '03), totalling 8 points (3 goals, 5 assists) in 14 games. Alexander Frolov's Russian team beat Canada for the gold in 2002, with Brown's US squad finishing fifth. Then in 2003, the US lost the Bronze Medal game to Finland. He's also played for Team USA four times at the World Championships that take place late in the Spring each year. Last April he was named captain of the team and they finished fourth in the standings. Next up, he'll play for Team USA again at the 2010 Olympics, where he'll return to wearing #32 and he'll be an assistant captain.
- Regarding the NHL lockout in 2004 he said "It was a blessing in disguise for me. I loved my time in Manchester. I learned a ton about how to be a pro."
- His wife also had a stellar hockey career before settling down with Dustin and becoming a full-time mom. (click here for an interview with her)
- In baseball you would call him a five-tool player. Brownie has it all - the ability to score, play defense, dish out big hits...and he's even been known to drop the gloves when needed.
- 2007-08 led the Kings in goals with 33.
- 2008-09 was a monumental year for Brown. He was the first American born player ever chosen to captain the Kings, he played in his first NHL All Star Game and in December '08 he scored his first hat trick against St Louis. After the game against the Blues, the always humble Brown said "I felt like I'd been in a slump. I was getting chances, but the pucks weren't going in. So, I was just trying to keep it simple and putting pucks on the net. That's what we need as a team, throwing pucks at the net."
- Was the youngest player in franchise history to be named captain.
- He is currently under contract with the LA Kings through June, 2014. While it has never been officially confirmed, it is believed he has the LA Kings logo "tattooed on his ass" like GM Dean Lombardi has said he needs his players to have.
Congratulations on goal #100. Fans throughout Staples Center appreciate what you do on a nightly basis to help the Kings win and are proud to call you THE CAPTAIN.
One19
www.twitter.com/Mayor119
note - part of the above article was originally published in Nov 2009 on Brownie's birthday...it was updated for today's post
RELATED ARTICLES:
10 Free Agent Tidbits - notes on Frolov and Ponikarovsky, plus thoughts on Kariya
10 Tidbits on Alexander Frolov
10 Tidbits on Wayne Simmonds
10 Tidbits on Drew Doughty
.
No comments:
Post a Comment