Carolina selects Pointe Claire’s Danny Biega

By Mark Lidbetter

Pointe Claire native and Hockey West Island product defenceman Danny Biega became the first Quebec born player selected at the 2010 NHL entry draft held in Los Angeles last weekend. Biega was tapped by the Carolina Hurricanes in the third round as the 67th overall pick.

“As far as the picks go I didn’t have too strong a feeling,” Danny Biega said. “But I definitely thought Carolina was an option and I’m really excited about the way things turned out.”

That selection came a month following his older brother and teammate on the Harvard Crimson, also a defenceman, Alex signing a two-year entry level contract with the Buffalo Sabres, a fifth round pick (147th overall) in the 2006 draft.

Biega, 5’11”, 195 lbs., recently completed his senior season as team captain at Harvard, picking up 10 points, two goals and eight assists in 33 games for the Crimson and was named Team MVP for the second consecutive season. Biega did not miss a game during his four seasons on the team and skated on Harvard’s top defensive pair throughout much of his career.

Younger brother Danny, who stands at 6’0’’ and weighs 202 pounds, was a point back of Alex with nine from five goals and four assists and will be returning to Harvard for his sophomore campaign where he will play with his other older brother Michael a forward heading into his senior year.

Last year was the first time Danny got to play with his two older siblings as he was always just too young to meet-up with them. He did get the chance by completing his prep school sessions at Salisbury a year earlier and entered Harvard.

“Going into the season I didn’t know if I’d like, dislike or feel awkward (playing with his brothers,” he said. “Truth be told, some games I would totally forget they were on the ice. After the game and off the ice I had my two best friends in my two brothers I could go to if I needed anything and that helped me get through my first year (at Harvard).”

The Hurricanes made five of their seven picks defensemen in a continuing effort to build up their defence corps throughout their system.

“I think I’m a little bit of a hybrid of both (offensive and defensive play),” he said. “I definitely enjoy joining the play, joining the rush but at the same time I have foundation in the defensive zone and can play defensive minded (hockey).”

Carolina was pleased with the chance to acquire Biega. “He’s an all-around guy who we think can eventually contribute to the power play,” Tony MacDonald Director of Amateur Scouting for the Hurricanes said. “He’s a pretty smart player and is very strong physically.”

Biega displayed that with an impressive performance at the NHL combine. “He’s a very well-trained athlete,” MacDonald said. “He was very well prepared for the combine and he impressed a lot of people with his performance there.”

“As far as the combine goes it was just a fun experience,” Biega said. “It was beneficial being at Harvard, we workout all season long and as far as the results go I think it shows our lifting program and how hard we work there at school.”

Biega will be back at Harvard come fall for another year but, “I think definitely one more year is a good decision but after that year everything is open, we’ll see what happens from there,” he said.