Our second installment of "Getting To Know..." features one Alexandre Picard who came to Raleigh in exchange for the Hurricanes' version of Ol' Blue Eyes prior to the Olympic break. The 24 (almost 25) year old from Quebec was drafted by Philadelphia in 2003 and helped the Philadelphia Phantoms win the Calder Cup in 2005 (along with Creepie...err Joni Pitkanen) before his rookie season in 2006. Picard has bounced around the NHL quite a bit with stops in Tampa Bay and Ottawa before finding a home (at least temporarily) in Carolina. Born in Gatineau, Picard has a younger brother and learned to love the game while watching his father coach on the weekends. He's also a bit of a mama's boy, at least when it comes to food, citing his mother's lasagna as his favorite meal.
Some random facts about our newest David Tanabe look-a-like:
*His best trait is patience and he values honesty in other people. Don't worry Alex-we're nothing but honest in Carolina.
*He never goes on the road without a good book.
*His first job was a soccer referee and he wanted to be a hockey player or sports journalist when he was little.
*He'd like to learn how to play the guitar and travel through Europe at some point.
*His worst subject in school? Math. Best subject? French.
*He was quote "probably nervous as hell" during his first date.
Picard has never been an offensive dynamo (his career high in goals is 1), but his 15 points and 11 assists put him at third and tied for second respectively among Sens' d-men before being traded in March. But he brings a young body that MoRonRowe can mold into the kind of player they want on the blueline.
So welcome to Raleigh Alex! Try the BBQ, check out a college basketball game (just don't pick a favorite), stay away from Tripp and never, ever watch game footage of A.Ward unless it's for laughs.