Benoit Pouliot’s signing with the Bruins put another twist on an intense, decades-old rivalry. Marc DesRosiers-US PRESSWIRE
Boston Bruins history for September 29:
1962: Cleon Daskalakis is born in Boston, Mass. A goaltender, he minded the net for the Boston University Terriers for four years before signing with the Bruins as a free agent in 1984 following his graduation. Over three years, he played 12 games for the Bruins, spending much of his time in the minors as well. He even spent time in Finland in 1988-89. Today he serves as the agent for an NFL and NHL player, does charity work and is in the BU athletics Hall of Fame.
1963: Dave Andreychuk (David John Andreychuk) is born in Hamilton, Ontario. Andreychuk is probably more well-known for his time in Buffalo, where he spent more than a decade, or his Stanley Cup championship with Tampa Bay in 2004, but he did spend time with Boston as well. It was a short stint–most of the 1999-2000 season–but helped contribute to some of his statistics. He ranks fifth in league history for games played, 14th for goals scored, 27th (tie) for points, first in power play goals and is the oldest player to make a Stanley Cup Final debut at 40 years and seven months back in 2004. He played one more season with the Lightning following their Cup win before retiring. Tampa Bay retains him today as Vice President in charge of fans.
1965: Jim Vesey (James Edward Vesey) is born in Charlestown, Mass. Vesey was drafted by, and played for, the St. Louis Blues, but played more in the minor leagues after four years at Merrimack College. In 1991, he was able to play four games for his hometown Bruins, though he didn’t put up any points, and he also played for the Maine Mariners and then the Providence Bruins as well. He hung up the skates in 1994-95, but his son Jimmy is keeping up the family tradition–he was a draft pick of the Nashville Predators in 2012.
1973: Joe Hulbig (Joseph Allan Hulbig) is born in Norwood, Mass. Drafted by Edmonton in 1992, he played four years at Providence College and went pro after he graduated. Eventually he signed as a free agent with Boston in 1999, though his time with his hometown team was cut shorter than he may have wanted due to a concussion. He also played in the New Jersey system, though that kept him in the AHL, playing part of the time in Worcester.
1977: Wade Brookbank is born in Lanigan, Saskatchewan. Though undrafted, he has plied his trade for many different teams at the NHL, AHL and ECHL levels over the years, starting in 1998. That included short stops in Boston and Providence in 2006-07. He didn’t score his first goal until 2004, though, when he was with Vancouver. He is more well-known for his role as an enforcer, though, and in some seasons he has racked up more than 300 penalty minutes. He is with the AHL Rockford IceHogs today, which keeps him near his brother Sheldon, who is with Chicago.
1986: Matt Lashoff (Matt Robert Lashoff) is born in East Greenbush, N.Y. Lashoff played in the U.S. National Team Development Program and in the OHL before he was drafted by the Bruins in 2005. He spent time in Providence and came up to Boston in October 2006, though he didn’t score his first goal until New Year’s Eve 2007. In 2009, he was part of the trade package sent down to Tampa Bay in exchange for Mark Recchi. He also spent time in Toronto and is now in the Swiss Nationalliga A. Plus, he’s also a musician with one album, Living on Heart, under his belt.
1986: Benoit Pouliot (Benoit Robert Pouliot) is born in Alfred, Ontario. Drafted in 2005 by Minnesota, before his NHL drafting and debut, he was able to enjoy time being coached by and playing on teams his dad Sylvain had ties to. Sylvain passed away before he could see much of his son’s professional success, sadly. Pouliot, though, won a gold medal at the 2006 World Juniors and then ascended to the NHL for 2006-07, debuting against the Canadiens. Eventually, he was traded to Montreal in 2008 after struggling in Minnesota. While with the Habs, he got into two fights two months apart with two men, David Krejci and Andrew Ference, who would eventually become his teammates. His signing with the Bruins in July 2011 put a new twist on the Boston-Montreal rivalry–especially when, in February 2012, he scored a big-time goal on his old team:
However, he was traded to Tampa Bay during the second day of the 2012 draft in exchange for Michel Ouellet and a pick Boston used to select Seth Griffith.
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