Hedican makes return with Ducks

RALEIGH -- The Anaheim Ducks have added a player since they first faced the Carolina Hurricanes this season, but he's no stranger to the Canes.

Bret Hedican signed a one-year contract with Anaheim on Oct. 23, four days after the Ducks' 3-1 loss to the Hurricanes in Anaheim. Tonight, the former Canes defenseman will be back at the RBC Center, where he spent five and a half seasons, where he helped Carolina raise a Stanley Cup championship banner in 2006.

"It's good to be back in Raleigh. It's always good to see some familiar faces," a smiling Hedican said today after the Ducks' pregame skate at the RecZone.

"A lot of things happened here. I had two kids here. I had gotten married just before coming here. We had two Stanley Cup runs here, won the Stanley Cup and have a lot of great friends here. I've got a lot of great memories."

Many wondered if Hedican might retire after last season. Then 37, he had played almost 1,000 NHL games and 16 years in the league had taken a physical toll.

Hedican and his wife, Kristi Yamaguchi, moved to the San Jose, Calif., area with their two daughters. Hedican wasn't in any preseason training camps, adding to the speculaton he might be done, but he soon began to put out some feelers.

"I got back to the West Coast and got my kids in school," he said. "I thought a team on the West Coast would come forward. Obviously, San Jose didn't but then a few other teams came forward and Anaheim obviously was a team I was looking at to join and it happened at the last minute. So I had to take this opportunity.

"The body actually felt great after last season. It held up good last year and I had a good year. I figured I'd give it one more shot. I'm just taking it one day at a time right now."

Hedican has played in 15 games with the Ducks, averaging 15:50 of ice time, and has a goal. He played in his 1,000th career game Nov. 21 against St. Louis.

While there hasn't been as much pregame fanfare for Hedican's return as that given former Canes forward Erik Cole, Hedican said being back in the RBC Center would be special.

"It's always a great building to be in," he said.

Carolina coach Peter Laviolette said he appreciated all that Hedican gave to the Hurricanes.

"He was in the organization quite a while and played a lot of games and a couple of Cup runs," Laviolette said today. "He was a steady two-way defenseman, he was a professional, he played hard all the time and was able to handle a lot of minutes against a lot of tough players. He was a real good player for us."