Donald Brashear (born January 7, 1972) is an American professional ice hockey left winger who currently plays for the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL). He previously played for the Montreal Canadiens, Vancouver Canucks, Philadelphia Flyers, and Washington Capitals. Born in Bedford, Indiana, he moved to Quebec in his youth.

Professional career

Brashear's stay in Montreal ended suddenly in 1996. Shortly after a heated verbal exchange with then-Canadiens head coach Mario Tremblay during a team practice in Denver, Brashear was traded to Vancouver for Jassen Cullimore. The full incident was filmed by RDS cameraman Paul Buisson.

During the February 21, 2000 Vancouver-Boston game, when Brashear played for Vancouver, Marty McSorley struck Brashear in the side of his head with his stick. Brashear fell to the ice, his head bounced, and his unsecured helmet flew off. Brashear suffered from a grade 3 concussion and memory lapses. He returned to play after several weeks and has fully recovered. McSorley was suspended and never played another NHL game.

Brashear testified that he has no memory of the incident. McSorley was found guilty of assault with a weapon but wasn't sent to jail. He had to complete 18 months of probation, in which he could not play against Brashear. McSorley claims that he tried to hit Brashear in the shoulder to start a fight with him and didn't mean to hit his head.

Brashear returned the next season and was traded to Philadelphia on December 17, 2001 for Jan Hlaváč. In 2002–03, he was awarded the Pelle Lindbergh Memorial, an annual trophy given to the Flyers' most improved player. He played a large role in instigating a brawl in a game between the Flyers and Ottawa Senators on March 5, 2004 which was the most penalized game in NHL history, with Brashear getting the most penalty minutes of any player involved.

Since the lockout came to an end, Brashear has had trouble adjusting to the new, more wide-open game. After a game in which he went after Darius Kasparitis who had taken a run at Peter Forsberg earlier in the game, he said he did not like the "new" NHL stating that you can't do anything anymore. Following the 2005–06 season, the Flyers indicated that they would not re-sign him as they preferred to go with younger players. Brashear was signed by the Washington Capitals on July 14, 2006 to a one-year contract. The Washington Capitals signed Brashear to a one-year, $1.1 million contract extension on February 12, 2007. During the 2007–08 NHL season, Brashear has served as one of the Capitals' alternate captains. On January 24, 2008, the Capitals once again re-signed Brashear to a one-year, $1.2 million extension.

During the 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs, in the April 26, 2009 game against the New York Rangers, Brashear was given a 6-game suspension for both a pre-game altercation with Rangers forward Colton Orr and what Colin Campbell ruled to be a late hit on Rangers center Blair Betts (Betts suffered an orbital eye socket fracture as a result of the hit.)

Brashear agreed to a free-agent contract with the New York Rangers on July 1, 2009 to fill their need of an enforcer after Colton Orr signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Brashear was booed by Rangers fans at a session with season-ticket holders in September 2009. After the altercation with the Rangers in the previous post season, Glen Sather was asked why he chose to sign Brashear. He said, "Donald is a great player and we need a guy to fill the tough role. He is a tough guy and the man we need. He certainly will be the man his teammates can go to and I have no doubts in my mind his new teammates will accept him."

A month after Brashear agreed to a free-agent contract with the Rangers, Mark Messier returned to the team as special assistant to the president and general manager. This brought Messier and Brashear together in the same team again, having played alongside each other while with the Vancouver Canucks in the late 1990's.

Personal

Brashear is the youngest of three children born to an American father and Québécois mother. His father was an alcoholic who abused his family. After his mother left the family, he continued to live with his father for several years until he was almost six. At that point he moved in with his mother and her new husband in Lorretteville, Quebec. However, his mother finally decided to give him up to foster care, apparently because of his "mental problems" from the abuse he had suffered, and because he did not accept her as his mother. He is now estranged from his birth family, except his brother, having had no contact since he was 18. He has two children. He was separated from their mother, his common-law wife, in 2007.

Brashear's uncle, Carl Brashear, inspired the movie Men of Honor, starring Cuba Gooding, Jr.

Awards

• 2003 – Pelle Lindbergh Memorial (Philadelphia Flyers)

Transactions

• July 28, 1992 – Signed as an unrestricted free agent by the Montreal Canadiens
• November 13, 1996 – Traded by the Montreal Canadiens to the Vancouver Canucks for Jassen Cullimore
• December 17, 2001 – Traded by the Vancouver Canucks with the Canucks' sixth round selection (Jaroslav Balaštík — later acquired by Columbus) in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft to the Philadelphia Flyers for Jan Hlaváč and the Flyers' third round selection (Brett Skinner — previously acquired from Tampa Bay) in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft
• July 14, 2006 – Signed as an unrestricted free agent by the Washington Capitals
• July 1, 2009 – Signed as an unrestricted free agent by the New York Rangers

Career statistics

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1988–89	Ste-Foy Gouverneurs	QAAA		10	1	2	3	10		—	—	—	—	—
1989–90	Longueuil Collège Français	QMJHL		64	12	14	26	169		7	0	0	0	11
1990–91	Longueuil Collège Français	QMJHL		68	12	26	38	195		8	0	3	3	33
1991–92	Verdun Collège Français	QMJHL		65	18	24	42	283		—	—	—	—	—
1992–93	Fredericton Canadiens	AHL		76	11	3	14	261		5	0	0	0	8
1993–94	Fredericton Canadiens	AHL		62	38	28	66	250		—	—	—	—	—
1993–94	Montreal Canadiens	NHL		14	2	2	4	34		2	0	0	0	0
1994–95	Fredericton Canadiens	AHL		29	10	9	19	182		17	7	5	12	77
1994–95	Montreal Canadiens	NHL		20	1	1	2	63		—	—	—	—	—
1995–96	Montreal Canadiens	NHL		67	0	4	4	223		6	0	0	0	2
1996–97	Montreal Canadiens	NHL		10	0	0	0	38		—	—	—	—	—
1996–97	Vancouver Canucks	NHL		59	8	5	13	207		—	—	—	—	—
1997–98	Vancouver Canucks	NHL		77	9	9	18	372		—	—	—	—	—
1998–99	Vancouver Canucks	NHL		82	8	10	18	209		—	—	—	—	—
1999–00	Vancouver Canucks	NHL		60	11	2	13	136		—	—	—	—	—
2000–01	Vancouver Canucks	NHL		79	9	19	28	145		4	0	0	0	0
2001–02	Vancouver Canucks	NHL		31	5	8	13	90		—	—	—	—	—
2001–02	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		50	4	15	19	109		5	0	0	0	19
2002–03	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		80	8	17	25	161		13	1	2	3	21
2003–04	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		64	6	7	13	212		18	1	3	4	61
2004–05	Quebec Radio X	LNAH		47	18	32	50	260		—	—	—	—	—
2005–06	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		76	4	5	9	166		1	0	0	0	0
2006–07	Washington Capitals	NHL		77	4	9	13	156		—	—	—	—	—
2007–08	Washington Capitals	NHL		80	5	3	8	119		7	1	1	2	0
2008–09	Washington Capitals	NHL		63	1	3	4	121
NHL totals				989	85	119	204	2,561		53	3	6	9	103

International statistics

Year	Team	Event		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1997	United States	WC		8	2	3	5	8
1998	United States	WC		6	0	0	0	10
Totals				14	2	3	5	18

See also

• Enforcer
• Fighting in ice hockey
• List of black NHL players
• List of NHL players with 1000 games played

References

• Interview on fighting in the NHL, 3/27/2007

External links

• Official website of Donald Brashear
• Photos of Donald Brashear by Bruce Andrew Peters