from Eric Duhatschek of the Globe and Mail, The moment that Dustin Brown came crashing onto the larger NHL playoff stage is easily determined. It occurred during the Los Angeles Kings’ opening-round series against the Vancouver Canucks, when Brown delivered a clean, crunching open-ice hit on Vancouver Canucks captain Henrik Sedin. At a time when all manner of body checks were examined under microscopic scrutiny, even Sedin was quick to concede that Brown’s hit was clean.
You can take all the points he’s scored (10 so far); all the plays he’s made shorthanded (which resulted in four goals); and all the quiet leadership Brown provides, but nothing galvanized his team more than that hit at that moment in that series.
L.A. had won the first two games in Vancouver, but they’d also led the Canucks the last time the teams met in the playoffs and eventually faltered. Brown’s hit woke up a sleepy club that, once called to attention, proceeded to march past Vancouver in five games and then ...
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May 07, 2012
