Briere Interview on espn.com

[Two or less]

http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/columns/stor...avid&id=2688408

 

Briere gets past stereotypes ... and that Ovechkin hit

 

No one is enjoying the new NHL more than Daniel Briere. Freed from the clutching and grabbing, the 29-year-old Sabres forward is now rocketing his way into the upper echelon of the league and he's taking the Sabres with him.

 

In this edition of Facing Off, the Sabres co-captain tells us how early NHL rejections helped him turn his career around, why he and Broadway Joe have something in common and which NHL star he hopes to be skating with at next month's All-Star Game.

 

 

Question from David Amber: Growing up, who was your favorite player?

 

 

Answer from Daniel Briere: I had three players that I would say were my favorites. Wayne Gretzky was obviously one of them for everything he did for hockey. I grew up a Habs fan, so Mats Naslund was another favorite. He was their main offensive weapon and a small guy, like me, so I loved watching him play, and Pat LaFontaine because he is a smaller guy who played in the Quebec Junior League. All these guys I could look up to and say, "If they could survive at their size and be stars in the NHL, maybe I can, too."

 

 

Q: Your size was always questioned. At 17, playing junior hockey, how big were you back then?

 

 

A: My first year of junior, I was 140 pounds at training camp. I was playing against guys who were 200, 220 pounds. I was small, but it was something I was never afraid of. It didn't matter to me how big they were. I knew I wasn't there to fight those guys or outmuscle them. I learned how to play against big guys. Every once and a while, I got crunched, but I did pretty well staying out of trouble.

 

Good read. lol i never knew he always looked up to LaFontaine and it's cool to see him still being angry at Ovechkin, cuz i know i am! And it's sad that AO never contacted him after the game. I also love the part about Mike Ryan's NHL debut. Classy stuff!

[inkman]

He's almost a Patty L. clone. I love it. As far as Ovy, not surprised at all. I was actually hoping Max or 'Tri would sort of act as intermediaries but doesn't sound like that came to fruition.

[Orange Seats]

I think Ovechkin did eventually call him. That interview is from a few days ago (as the editor noted, they asked about Danny not getting a hat trick days before he got one).

[JujuFish]

Q: Who do you room with on the road?

 

A: Marty Biron.

 

Q: What's that like?

 

A: [Laughs.] Lots of talking. Marty never shuts up, he's a motor mouth. But the best thing about Marty is that he one of the most positive guys I have ever been around and he never has anything bad to say about anybody. He is a refreshing guy to be around, always positive. He is a laid-back guy, so he's easy to room with. It's funny, everyone used to tell me, "Oh, boy, you're with Marty. He's never going to shut up, you'll never get any sleep." But he's great to be around and we have a lot of fun.

:lol:

[Larry Playfair]

this kid rules!