Brooks Laich

Evan Brooks Laich (born June 23, 1983) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey forward.

He played over 750 National Hockey League (NHL) games across four teams: the Ottawa Senators, Washington Capitals, Toronto Maple Leafs and the Los Angeles Kings.

During the 1999–2000 season, he was the top scorer and most valuable player for the midget AAA Tisdale Trojans.

He was the runner up for league MVP.

Laich started his junior hockey career with the Moose Jaw Warriors of the Western Hockey League (WHL) during the 2000–01 season.

He played in 71 games with the Warriors, scoring nine goals and adding 21 assists.

Laich was a dedicated student in Moose Jaw, being awarded the club's Scholastic Player of the Year for the 2000–01 season.

Laich was originally drafted by the Senators in the 2001 NHL Entry Draft, and was later traded to the Capitals as part of the package for Peter Bondra.

Before playing professionally, Laich spent time in the Western Hockey League (WHL) playing with the Moose Jaw Warriors and Seattle Thunderbirds.

After the season, he was drafted by the Ottawa Senators in the sixth round, 193rd overall, of the 2001 NHL Entry Draft.

He started the 2001–02 season with the Warriors, but was traded to the Seattle Thunderbirds along with Tomáš Mojžíš for Craig Olynick and Stas Avksentiev.

The deal was unpopular with Warriors fans, as Olynick left the club and Avksentiev never reported.

Laich spent the rest of his junior career with the Thunderbirds.

He started to develop more of an offensive game, finishing off the 2001–02 season with 58 points in the 47 games he played in Seattle.

Laich has said that getting traded to Seattle was a good move for him, with coach Dean Chynoweth providing ample opportunities for him to display his skills.

He was named the team's Most Dedicated Player after the 2001–02 season.

His offensive game flourished further in his first full season with the Thunderbirds (2002–03), as he finished the season with 41 goals and 53 assists, leading the team.

These stats placed him sixth overall in the WHL points race.

He was named the WHL's Western Conference MVP.

He was also named to the WHL's Western Conference First All-Star Team, and the Canadian Hockey League's Third All-Star Team.

Laich attended the Ottawa Senators training camp before the 2002–03 season.

He has represented Canada internationally, capturing a silver medal at the 2003 World Junior Championships, and playing for Canada again at the 2010 World Hockey Championships.

Laich started playing minor hockey in his hometown of Wawota, Saskatchewan.

He played his first professional game in the American Hockey League (AHL) for the Binghamton Senators in 2003.

He made his National Hockey League (NHL) debut with the Senators on February 3, 2003, against the New Jersey Devils.

Later in the season, Laich was traded to the Washington Capitals, along with a second round draft pick, for Peter Bondra, a deal which ended Bondra's 14-year career with the Capitals.

After the trade, he reported to the Capitals' AHL affiliate, the Portland Pirates, making his debut with the Capitals on March 12, 2003, against the Chicago Blackhawks.

He finished the season playing with the Pirates, appearing in six playoff games.

The NHL lockout saw Laich spend the entire 2004–05 season with the Pirates, playing in 68 games, finishing eighth on the team in scoring with 16 goals and 10 assists.

During the 2005–06 season, Laich played in 104 regular season and playoff games between the Capitals and their new AHL affiliate, the Hershey Bears; this tied him for the most games played in the organization with Boyd Gordon.

After training camp, he started the season in the AHL, but was optimistic about his chances to play in the NHL, saying, "You've just got to work hard. There's spots up there, guys could go down with an injury, you want to be the first guy called up."

He spent most of the season at the NHL level, playing in 73 games and recording 21 points.

After the Capitals' season was over, Laich rejoined the Bears for their playoff run and scored eight goals in 21 games while helping the team capture the Calder Cup.

Laich played the entire 2006–07 season with the Capitals, scoring eight goals and adding ten assists.

After the season, Laich and the Capitals went to salary arbitration, where he was awarded a one-year contract worth $725,000.

Laich played in all 82 games for the Capitals during the 2007–08 season, and set career highs in goals, assists and points.

His 21 goals ranked third overall on the team.

He led the Capitals with two short handed goals, and played in his 200th career regular season game.

After a two-goal game against the Atlanta Thrashers, Laich summed up his philosophy towards scoring: "If you want money, go to the bank. If you want bread, go to the bakery. If you want goals, go to the net."

During the playoffs, Laich had a five-game point streak in the Eastern Conference quarter-finals against the Philadelphia Flyers.