Mired in early-season struggles, such a fact likely provided a semblance of comfort for the 21-year-old rookie. Something certainly had to.
The first 44 games of Brooks’ AHL career did not go as planned. Across that span, he collected just seven points, while primarily operating on the fourth line.
These hiccups were understandable. Adjusting to the professional level is a difficult task for anyone, let alone a 5’10” centre.
Having played his last four years in junior, where one’s oldest opponents top out at 20, Brooks was now matching up against grown men. Guys with mortgages and 401k’s, whose five o’clock shadow arrived two hours early.