SADOWSKI: Brunette still wonders why

By Rick Sadowski, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published November 6, 2008 at 5:28 p.m.
Updated November 6, 2008 at 10:51 p.m.

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Photo by Paul Battaglia © Associated Press

Minnesota Wild winger Andrew Brunette can't control the puck in front of Buffalo Sabres goalie Ryan Miller during the first period Oct. 23, 2008, in St. Paul, Minn.

Andrew Brunette still isn't quite sure why he's no longer a member of the Avalanche.

"I thought I did my job," said Brunette, who returned to Minnesota in July as a free agent after the Avalanche showed little interest in re-signing him.

The Avalanche's indifference was hard to figure, even if age - Brunette turned 35 in August - was a cause for concern. He's the NHL's active ironman, having played in his 465th consecutive game when the Wild visited the Avalanche on Thursday night, and he averaged 23 goals and 45 assists in his three seasons in Colorado.

"I don't understand it, either," said Brunette, who was the Avalanche's second-leading scorer last season with 19 goals and 40 assists. "I miss it. I really enjoyed my time there. I know the power play wasn't where we wanted it to be last year, but I thought I played pretty well with Joe (Sakic)."

The Avalanche had little contact with Brunette after its second-round loss to Detroit in the playoffs, apparently believing that young David Jones could play a similar role. Colorado also signed free agent Darcy Tucker, 33, to a two-year, $4.5 million contract.

Brunette said the Avalanche tendered what he called a "courtesy" offer of a one-year deal "for the same or less money" than the $1.6 million he made last season.

"I don't know if you could even call it an offer," he said.

The Wild was more than happy to take Brunette off the Avalanche's hands, signing him to a three-year, $7 million contract minutes after the free-agent market opened.

Brunette played three seasons in Minnesota before joining the Avalanche in August 2005 and scored the overtime goal against Patrick Roy to knock the Avalanche out of the playoffs in 2003. It was the last goal allowed by Roy in his Hall of Fame career.

Brunette said he isn't bitter about how his time in Colorado ended, just puzzled.

"It's a business," he said. "Things happen."

While the Avalanche is struggling, the season couldn't be unfolding much better for Brunette and the Wild, despite a number of injuries to key players and some drama concerning the contract status of star forward Marian Gaborik, who is eligible for free agency after the season and currently is on injured reserve with a lower body ailment.

The defending Northwest Division champion was in first place after Thursday's win against the Avalanche. Brunette is the team's third-best scorer with five goals and four assists. He's skating on the top line with Mikko Koivu and Antti Miettinen, a unit that has combined for 13 goals and 23 assists in the Wild's first 12 games.

"We've gotten off to a pretty good start, especially with all the injuries we've had," Brunette said. "We're pretty banged up. We have a couple games left on this trip (a four-game excursion that ends Saturday in Vancouver). We have to find a way to get some points out of these games."

The return to Minnesota has been a relatively smooth one for Brunette, a popular player in the Twin Cities area.

"There are five or six guys here that I either played with or I already knew," he said. "I obviously knew all the trainers and coaches. We've been able to play some good hockey, play right and win some games. It was big for us to start off well. It's been more than enjoyable."

Selanne keeps on going

Age hasn't slowed Teemu Selanne, who remains an oldie-but-goodie.

The 38-year-old right wing leads the Anaheim Ducks in goals with eight in 14 games and has been on a tear with six goals and four assists in the past five games.

"Maybe I'm not fast as I was when I was 22, but I think speed is still the key for me," Selanne said this week in a conference call with reporters. "I like to use that to my advantage. I still like the game, and I'm very lucky that I'm always playing with great players, which really makes my game easier. But you just have to love this game and play with a passion and hope that you can stay healthy."

Selanne signed a two-year, $5.25 million contract shortly before the season started after sitting out most of last year while pondering whether to retire after hoisting the Stanley Cup for the first time in 2007. He eventually returned and played in 26 games, but the Ducks were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs.

"Last year at this time, I thought I'm done," said Selanne, who is tied with Guy Lafleur for 20th place all time with 560 career goals. "Obviously, winning the Stanley Cup was something that got me so empty physically and mentally, too. I took a long time when I realized I want to play again. Last summer, that wasn't the case. I knew I wanted to play.

"Even though I signed a two-year deal, I still try to look just one year at a time and go from there. The older you get, the harder it gets."

Jackets look forward

The Columbus Blue Jackets believe their goaltending eventually will be in good hands for years to come with Steve Mason, who made the jump to the NHL this week with just three games of minor league experience.

Mason, 20, covers plenty of net with his 6-foot-4, 202-pound frame and played well enough in his NHL debut to secure a 5-4 shootout win against Edmonton on Wednesday after being told that veterans Pascal Leclaire (ankle) and Fredrik Norrena (groin) wouldn't be able to play.

"He made some nice saves and he learned some lessons," Blue Jackets coach Ken Hitchcock said. "He learned how good the NHL is."

Mason was the Blue Jackets' second pick in the 2006 draft. He went 32-7-3 with a 2.51 goals-against average and three shutouts last year in 42 games with London and Kitchener in the Ontario Hockey League. He also posted a 5-0 record with a 1.19 average and one shutout to capture most valuable player honors when Canada won the gold medal in the 2008 World Junior Championships.

Mason needed arthroscopic knee surgery in late September - it was his second surgery in seven months - and played three games for Syracuse in the American Hockey League.

• November 7, 2008

  12:19 a.m.

  Suggest removal

  SinBin writes:

  Because our GM is an idiot.!!!!

• November 7, 2008

  4:45 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  MRhockey writes:

  No, its because our GM was saving the money to spend on a top-flight goalie.....Andrew freakin Raycroft...... No wait, sinbin was right. Our GM is a idiot

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