We get to know NHL players with five quick questions. Today's subject: Canucks forward Alex Burrows, who scored a goal in Wednesday's night's 7-1 win over the Canadiens.
What is your earliest hockey memory?
Growing up in Montreal, watching the Canadiens win the Stanley Cup in 1986, when I was five years old. They were the talk of the city, and that's when I got into hockey. There was such a buzz about it everywhere. I remember Patrick Roy lifting up the Cup, no shirt, just a skinny 20-year-old.
Hockey was big in Montreal in the '80s for sure, but my dad (Rodney) is from England so he had no clue about it. He coached me playing soccer, and that was a fun thing to do during the summer, run around. But nobody had to push me to play hockey, I was at the rink all the time.
What is your favorite/least favorite thing about playing in the NHL?
Do you have any pregame rituals or superstitions?
I wouldn't say superstitions, but I would say I have a routine. I get up and have breakfast -- oatmeal, toast, fruit -- and I get my sticks ready. After we skate, I have some pasta, some chicken breast, things that are easiest to digest before a game, and then I nap from 2 to 4 p.m., 4:30 if it's a 7:30 start. Then I get up and go get a snack to make sure I'm not hungry later and I stretch and play a little soccer. That's it, every game day. Sleeping and food.
Which player would you most like to run into the boards hard?
Can I say more than one? If it's just one, I'll say Corey Perry of the Ducks. That guy's a very good, skilled played, but he's kind of chippy and he does some dangerous stuff out there. I was happy when Ryan Kesler took him down (Sept. 17 in an exhibition game).
If you could be one teammate, who would it be and why?
He's not in the league anymore, but I would have to say Trevor Linden. He's probably mentored a lot of guys in this locker room. Trevor sat beside my stall my first couple of years and he taught me about the game, about players, plays, what it takes to be a professional hockey player. He's such a class act. He's the best. So nice, no big head, great to everyone -- fans, players, management, and he worked so hard on the ice. And he also had a really good career. So definitely him.
