Dubinsky Sparks Winterhawks offense

Following a miserable, uneventful season in 2002/2003, the Portland Winterhawks looked to insert some pop into their new and improved lineup.

After going 19-40-8-5; being the only team in the Western Conference to fail to score two hundred goals on the season, Portland didn’t just need help, they needed a star offensive weapon to lead the charge.

Enter Brandon Dubinsky.

After having a solid rookie campaign in which he finished seventh in team scoring, despite missing twenty-eight games due to injury, Dubinsky was looking to use his experience and learn from the growing pains of the previous year - all as a stepping stone to a much improved campaign in 2003-04. And boy, has he ever.

With seventy one points this season, Dubinsky is easily the runaway offensive producer in Portland and sits eleventh in league scoring, behind a plethora of nineteen and twenty year olds. McKeen’s correspondent Trent Allen recently had an opportunity to speak with Dubinsky.

McKeens: You were ranked 92nd amongst North American Skaters by CSB for their Mid-Term Rankings. How did you first react when you saw where you were slotted?

Brandon Dubinsky: Ummm…... I don’t know. I thought I deserved better. I’m not the one watching the games though so I don’t really have much of a say in it. I don’t let it discourage me. I believe I should be higher, but I’m not going to bash anyone higher then me on the list. I felt I should be higher, but I don’t have a say so I’m not going to worry about it.

McKeens: In May, 2002, you attended the US National Team Development Camp. What made you decide to go for the WHL route as opposed to going with the National Team, which has proven to develop many young talents?

Brandon Dubinsky: The National Team was something I was going to go for. It was at the top of my list. But I wasn’t chosen to be on the final team. I felt kind of shafted because I believed I deserved to make the team, but it didn’t work out that way. I was top ten in scoring at the tournament and was told I was making a good impression and was on the money to make it. So I was kinda shocked when I didn’t make it. I had told Portland and General Manager Ken Hodge that if I was drafted (by Portland in the 2002 Bantam Draft) I would go to the team. It was one of the best decisions I made.

McKeens: In 2000-2001, your Bantam team took 2nd in the US Nationals. What was it like to be on a team that accomplished such a feat?

Brandon Dubinsky: Looking back, it was amazing. I thought we were the best team. We beat the Jr. Devils (eventual champions) in the round robin and were up one goal with nine minutes left in the third in the championship game. They got some really lucky break I think and they won. It was tough losing like that, but it was a great experience and one I’m proud of.

McKeens: You attended the Junior Prep Hockey Camp, the same camp that can boast Paul Kariya as one of its former players. How did this camp help prepare you for your future as a hockey player?

Brandon Dubinsky: It was a lot of fun. Me and friend Blake Martinson went and had a great time. It was just a lot of fun. The caliber of hockey was a big help preparing me for the next level, like the WHL.

McKeens: You were selected 88th overall in the 2002 Bantam Draft from the AAHA (Alaska All-Stars Hockey Association). You were the second highest drafted player that year from the AAHA, behind Moises Gutierrez, who went 31st. Did you expect to go higher, considering your season that year?

Brandon Dubinsky: Not really. Being an American, you feel you get written off for the Draft. Being American, you get raised with the expectations of going Division One hockey and WHL teams don’t want to take the chance sometimes that you will come to the league. A perfect example is Billy Smith, who went 18th overall in the same draft to Swift Current and didn’t even go to their training camp. So, it doesn’t bother me. I understand why some teams stay away from drafting American players.

McKeens: Do you ever think you have something to prove to scouts when you go head to head against Gutierrez?

Brandon Dubinsky: No. Not at all. We are good friends actually so there is no competition. Maybe a little friendly competition. Likely we may joke about who has the most points or something, but the draft didn’t bother me and doesn’t now. I never feel like I have something to prove to the scouts (from the WHL).

McKeens: Recently, you were named a Canada Post Second Segment winner for your division by leading all players in the division with fifty-four three star points. Does accomplishing this validate to you that you are having an elite season for the WinterHawks?

Brandon Dubinsky: It’s a big honor. Sometimes I wonder who picks the games three stars, but any time you are picked one of the games three stars it is great. To have won that honor not only for your team but for the whole division over that time is quite an honor, but I can’t take all the credit. I give a lot of credit to my linemates too; they are a big part of my success this season.

McKeens: Last season, you broke your hand and missed twenty two games. How it for you dealing with an injury like that and have you had any severe injuries in the past?

Brandon Dubinsky: I had a separated shoulder before. For my hand injury, I went to hit Dylan Stanley from Tri-Cities and I missed him and hit the boards with my hand. It was one of those things I could have done a hundred times and nothing would have happened, but this time my hand broke. I hated watching games. I’d rather have been playing and helping my team, but I think it made me stronger because I wanted to play so much and it really gave me a lot of desire to play.

McKeens: You returned from the injury during the playoffs. How hard was it for you to just jump back into the line up when the playoffs were underway?

Brandon Dubinsky: Yeah, it was hard. I had missed a lot of games and, being sixteen, I wasn’t experienced for the WHL playoffs. I wasn’t in game shape either. I was in shape, but riding the bike can’t get you really into game shape, no matter how much you ride you know. It was difficult to come back into the line up like that.

McKeens: Portland lost that playoff series to Spokane four games to three, despite being up three games to one in the series at one point. How hard was losing that series for you and for the team?

Brandon Dubinsky: It was extremely hard. It was tough to take. Last year, there were a lot of new faces, a lot of rookies. We wanted a fresh start (in the playoffs) and hoped to win a round or two. We were devastated when we lost that series.

McKeens: You have been described by scouts as a player that plays hard and even gritty despite your small size. Do you feel that is an accurate assessment?

Brandon Dubinsky: I love to be in the mix and in the middle of things, so yes; I’d have to say that’s fair.

McKeens: What do you feel are the strengths of your game?

Brandon Dubinsky: My best strength is my passing skills. I see the ice well and I anticipate the play well. I always know where my teammates are on the ice. I guess I’d just say my vision while I’m on the ice.

McKeens: What do you feel you need to work on to improve your game and your draft ranking?

Brandon Dubinsky: My skating. I feel I skate well enough to keep up with the play and with most skaters you know, I just need to work on keeping my feet moving all the time. It’s something I’ve been told to work on so I need to get better with that. Also playing well defensively. I’m good in the offensive zone, but in the other end of the ice I need to work on getting better. I’m trying to work at it, so hopefully I’ll get better.

McKeens: What kind of player do you see yourself as being if you make the NHL level?

Brandon Dubinsky: I need to get stronger and faster. The NHL is much faster then the WHL. To be in the NHL, you have to be able to do something special. I think my skating can get me there, if I improve. Also, I’m good at face-offs, which is important in the NHL now a day.

McKeens: Finally, why should an NHL team draft you?

Brandon Dubinsky: (laughs) I think they should draft me because I bring lots to the table. I have good energy and character. I can score and I like to be the go to guy that can be out there in all situations. I’m good on face-offs like I said and I have a lot of drive to succeed. I think I have the skill to play in the NHL.