The captain of my beloved Los Angeles Kings, Dustin Brown, is one of the best players in the NHL. Unfortunately, he hurt his hamstring at the start of training camp and is only just now coming back from it. This means he missed a lot of camp and so he is “rusty,” according the Darryl Sutter, the head coach.
As a result, Brownie isn’t on the first line in the Kings’ season opener. He’s got a place on the third. I’m 100% certain he’ll move back up. He just needs a few games under his belt. They’ve all just come off three months of no hockey. They were all rusty coming into camp, but everyone but Brownie rid themselves of the rust during camp and during those pre-season games.
And you know what? Brown would be the first person to tell you, that’s the way it is and that’s the way it should be. In professional hockey, you earn your place on the line.
Man, I love this sport.
Update: Brown moved to the first line in the middle of the second game of the season, and yet in the third game–the home opener (the first game of the regular season played at home), he was sort of invisible and didn't do much.