Niedermayer on Ducks' struggles, NHLPA mess

Friday, November 13, 2009 | Feedback | Print Entry

Anaheim Ducks captain Scott Niedermayer stands among the most decorated skaters in hockey history. He has been a key contributor to four Stanley Cup champions, as well as gold medal squads at the World Junior Championships, World Championships, World Cup of Hockey and the Winter Olympics.

After seriously considering retirement in both 2007 and 2008, Niedermayer opted to return to the Ducks for another season. Now 36, he also figures to be an important part of Canada's 2010 Olympic team. In fact, there's an excellent chance he could be named the captain of that club.

On Wednesday afternoon, just hours before the Ducks' 3-1 loss to his former club in New Jersey, I corralled the elite puck-mover for five questions.

 
 

To read about why Scott Niedermayer sometimes bites his tongue after a soft penalty, as well as his thoughts on the Olympics and the NHLPA debacle, you must be an ESPN Insider.
E.J. Hradek
E.J. Hradek

E.J. Hradek is a senior writer at ESPN The Magazine, joining the staff prior to its launch in 1998. He began covering hockey as a writer/editor for Hockey Illustrated in 1989. The following year, he beat the Stars to Dallas (by three years), taking over as the editor of Beckett Hockey Monthly. When the Stars finally did arrive in Big D, he hosted a weekly hockey radio show and tried (unsuccessfully) to convert ESPN's Skip Bayless to the greatest game on ice.

In 1996, Hradek left Dallas, but not the Stars. Relocating back to the New York area, he became a part-time pro scout for the club, seeing more than 100 NHL/AHL games for each of the next two seasons. The scouting gig was a great learning experience, offering a different view of the game.

Hradek grew up in Tuckahoe, N.Y., about a 40-minute train ride from New York City. Despite the proximity to the Rangers, Hradek embraced the Islanders when the expansion franchise debuted in 1972. Eight years later, he was part of the sellout crowd at the Nassau Coliseum that witnessed the Islanders' first Stanley Cup championship.


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