Derick Brassard feels trade from Penguins to Panthers lifted burden

SUNRISE, Fla. – Say this for Derick Brassard. He’s consistent.

During 12 months in a Pittsburgh Penguins uniform, he was consistent in his ineffectiveness as the center on the team’s third line.

He’s also always been consistent in his explanation of why things went wrong.

“Just the role that I had in Ottawa or New York was obviously bigger,” Brassard said Thursday morning. “I said that a million times. It wasn’t (coach Mike Sullivan’s) fault. He had (Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin) in front of me, same position. Sometimes I felt it was hard for me to be involved and be in games and be confident making plays.

“Just the last week or so, I feel like I’m 10 pounds lighter out there. I feel like I’m going to have more responsibility here, playing with some good players. It’s too bad it didn’t work.”

Brassard met with reporters after morning skate as he prepared to face his old team six days after being traded to the Florida Panthers with Riley Sheahan and three draft picks for Nick Bjugstad and Jared McCann last Friday.

Here is a sampling of some of the topics he discussed.

— On being involved in trade rumors: “I think the last month or so was pretty hard for mentally just going to the rink. I knew I was hearing my name. I had a good talk with (general manager Jim Rutherford) a few weeks ago. I knew I was going to move on. I think, from both sides, that’s what we wanted. Not because I didn’t like the team or I didn’t like anyone there. I have a lot of respect for the players and the staff there.”

— On the positives he’ll take away from his time in Pittsburgh: “It was a really fun experience to see how those guys prepare and see how they do things every day because they’re a winning team. They know how to win and win championships. I’ll take that as an experience for me. At the same time, I feel like I can really be myself. I don’t think it was the right fit for me. I’m trying to move on and I’m really excited to be here.”

— On never becoming part of the core with the Penguins: “They had a really good group of guys in Pitt, but the fact that they won two or three times, it’s not an easy thing to do for another player to come in and try to establish yourself, especially when the expectations are high. “

— On why he thinks things will go better in Florida: “The power play, especially in Pittsburgh, it’s focused on one (unit). They had the best one in the last two years. Sometimes I was going like 20 seconds, 30 seconds. As an offensive player, you want to be out there. You want to get your touches. You want to try and get some confidence out of being on the power play. It’s just the way it was there.”

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Jonathan Bombulie is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Jonathan at jbombulie@tribweb.com or via Twitter @BombulieTrib.