Rocket rookie Montgomery overcomes fatigue to excel

At age 16, Chris Montgomery has emerged as the Quebec league’s top scoring rookie. But the Montreal Rocket center would be the first to tell you the adjustment hasn’t been as smooth off the ice. In his efforts to meet the demands of junior hockey and school, Montgomery came down with a fatigue syndrome that almost led to mononucleosis. He experienced weight loss, regularly suffered from headaches and tired easily. “It didn’t come from playing too much hockey,” said Montgomery, who has been out since Nov. 12 and planned to return Dec. 1. “I almost brought it on i myself. “I wasn’t eating when I should have been. I would more or less pick something up on the way to the rink or on the way back. It just caught up to me.” His bout with…

Red light dark, so Freds’ Trotz shuffles lines

Change is still the constant for the Nashville Predators as they continue to juggle players in their quest for consistency. At 34, Cliff Ronning is the oldest Predator. He also has the most NHL experience and led the team in points with 16 by the U.S. Thanksgiving Day. But even he’s not immune to the coaches’ tinkering. Ronning, a career center, was shifted to left wing on a fine with rookie David Legwand in the middle and Patric Kjellberg on the right side. Ronning had seen sporadic time at wing with the Vancouver Canucks and Phoenix Coyotes earlier in his career. “I’ve done it before,” Ronning said. “It’s not uncomfortable for me to be on the wall. I’m like everybody with this team and one of the things I like about playing here…

Flames warm up to cool masked man as Brathwaite heats up Calgary crease

On “Grant Fuhr Night” at the Canadian Airlines Saddledome, the man who idolized the future Hall of Famer as a kid did a little celebrating of his own. That would be Fred Brathwaite, who, until the middle of November, watched his childhood hero up-close-and-personal from the end of the Calgary Flames’ bench. Fuhr, unfortunately, was off to one of the slower starts of his NHL career-5-81 record, 3.59 goals-against average and .862 save percentage-so coach Brian Sutter made a bold move, giving Brathwaite a chance to shine. Brathwaite got five consecutive starts and was the primary reason the Flames rattled off a season-high three-game win streak, allowing only eight goals in the process. For Brathwaite, the modest turnaround-which began Nov. 19 with a 3-1 win over the Detroit Red Wings on a night…

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