Brooks Laich

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Born June 23, 1983 (1983-06-23) (age 26),
Wawota, SK, CAN
Height
Weight		 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
199 lb (90 kg; 14 st 3 lb)
Position Centre
Shoots Left
NHL team
F. teams		 Washington Capitals
Ottawa Senators
NHL Draft 193rd overall, 2001
Ottawa Senators
Pro career 2004 – present

Brooks Laich (pronounced /ˈlaɪk/ "like" rhymes with "looks like"; born June 23, 1983 in Wawota, Saskatchewan) is a Canadian ice hockey player with the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League.

Contents

[edit] Junior career

In 2000–01, he was playing for the Moose Jaw Warriors in the Western Hockey League. Scouting reports noted that he was a steady point scorer who was also prepared to work in a defensive role but he needed to work to develop his body to meet the demands of the NHL. That year, Laich was drafted by the Ottawa Senators in the sixth round, 193rd overall.

In 2001, he was traded to the Seattle Thunderbirds where he played the remainder of his junior hockey career. The 2002–03 season was a breakout year for Laich, who led the Thunderbirds with 41 goals and 94 points, earning the WHL Western Conference MVP. Though previously noted for his defensive abilities, Laich earned a reputation for stellar offensive play by the time he moved to the American Hockey League.[1]

In 2003, Laich was a member of the silver medal-winning Canadian team at the World Junior Championships played in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

[edit] Professional career

The 2003–04 season proved to be a hectic one for Laich as he split his time between the Ottawa Senators and the Washington Capitals at the NHL level as well as the Binghamton Senators and the Portland Pirates of the AHL. During this season, Laich was traded to the Washington Capitals organization for Peter Bondra. Laich spent the lost NHL 2004–05 season with the Portland Pirates of the American Hockey League. He began the 2005–06 NHL season with the Capitals' new AHL affiliate, the Hershey Bears, but was called up to the Capitals soon after.

During the 2006–07 NHL season he played 73 games for the Capitals and was noted for his two-way play as well as his ability to play both the center and wing positions. Laich was re-signed by the Capitals on July 25, 2007.[2]

The 2007–08 NHL season saw Laich develop into a more offensive player. He scored 21 goals (more than the previous three NHL seasons combined) and posted 37 points primarily through gritty play in the front of the goal. Laich led the team with a 17.2 shooting percentage and led all Capitals forwards with 56 blocked shots. Laich explained that his hockey philosophy was, "If you want money, go to the bank. If you want bread, go to the bakery. If you want goals, go to the net."[3] On July 9, 2008, Laich signed a 3 year $6.1 million deal to stay with the Capitals.

Laich has been mentioned as the future captain for the Capitals due to his commitment to team. When asked about his team attitude, he replied "If I asked you about your family, you would talk about them forever because it's something you love," Laich said. "That's the way I feel about this team. This team is my life, and I love playing here and I'm passionate about playing hockey. So it's easy for me to talk about it." [4]

[edit] Career statistics

    Regular season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2000–01 Moose Jaw Warriors WHL 71 9 21 30 28 4 0 0 0 5
2001–02 Seattle Thunderbirds WHL 28 6 14 20 12 — — — — —
2001–02 Seattle Thunderbirds WHL 47 22 36 58 42 11 5 3 8 11
2002–03 Seattle Thunderbirds WHL 60 41 53 94 65 15 5 14 19 24
2003–04 Ottawa Senators NHL 1 0 0 0 2 — — — — —
2003–04 Washington Capitals NHL 4 0 1 1 0 — — — — —
2003–04 Binghamton Senators AHL 44 15 18 33 16 — — — — —
2003–04 Portland Pirates AHL 22 1 3 4 12 6 0 0 0 0
2004–05 Portland Pirates AHL 68 16 10 26 33 — — — — —
2005–06 Washington Capitals NHL 73 7 14 21 26 — — — — —
2005–06 Hershey Bears AHL 10 7 6 13 8 21 8 7 15 29
2006–07 Washington Capitals NHL 73 8 10 18 29 — — — — —
2007–08 Washington Capitals NHL 82 21 16 37 35 7 1 5 6 4
2008–09 Washington Capitals NHL 82 23 30 53 31 14 3 4 7 10
NHL totals 315 59 71 130 123 21 4 9 13 14
AHL totals 144 39 37 76 69 27 8 7 15 29
WHL totals 206 78 124 202 147 30 10 17 27 40

[edit] References

  1. ^ "Seattle Thunderbirds". Seattle Hockey. http://www.seattlehockey.net/thunderbirds/thunderbirds.htm. Retrieved 2009-01-03. 
  2. ^ "Capitals Re-Sign Center Brooks Laich". Washington Capitals. http://capitals.nhl.com/team/app?articleid=335317&page=NewsPage&service=page. Retrieved 2007-07-28. 
  3. ^ "Capitals Insider". Washington Post. http://voices.washingtonpost.com/capitalsinsider/2008/12/caps_4_leafs_1.html. Retrieved 2009-01-03. 
  4. ^ "Caps' Laich Supplies Grit, And Is Adding Some Polish". Washington Post. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/03/18/AR2009031802779.html. Retrieved 2009-04-13. 

[edit] External links

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brooks_Laich"