Gilbert Brule Gilbert Jean Marco Brulé ( born January 1 , 1987 ) is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre currently with the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League ( NHL ) . Drafted out of the Western Hockey League ( WHL ) , Brulé played major junior with the Vancouver Giants for three seasons . After being named the WHL rookie of the year in 2004 , Brulé was selected as the WHL playoff MVP and led the Memorial Cup in scoring , as part of the Giants ' WHL championship - winning season two years later . Selected sixth overall in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft , he began his NHL career with the Columbus Blue Jackets before being traded to the Oilers prior to the 2008 – 09 season . Internationally , Brulé has represented Team Canada at the 2004 World U - 17 Hockey Challenge and 2004 U - 18 Junior World Cup , winning silver and gold medals , respectively . Playing career . Early junior career . Brulé was selected first overall in the 2002 WHL Bantam Draft by the Vancouver Giants . The selection was originally possessed by the Prince Albert Raiders , but was dealt to the Giants in exchange for their third overall and third round selections . He debuted in one game with the Giants during the subsequent WHL season , while playing Junior A in the British Columbia Hockey League ( BCHL ) with the Quesnel Millionaires . Recording 57 points ( 32 goals and 25 assists ) over 48 games in his lone BCHL season , he was named the Interior Conference ' s recipient of the Bruce Allison Memorial Trophy as rookie of the year . In 2003 – 04 , Brulé joined the Giants and tallied 60 points in 67 games . He became the first Giants player to win a major WHL award , receiving the Jim Piggott Memorial Trophy as league rookie of the year . The distinction made him a nominee for Canadian Hockey League ( CHL ) Rookie of the Year , which went to Quebec Major Junior Hockey League ( QMJHL ) rookie of the year Sidney Crosby of the Rimouski Oceanic . He joined Crosby on the CHL All - Rookie Team . The following season , Brulé finished third in WHL scoring with 87 points ( 39 goals and 48 assists ) , establishing a Giants single - season point - scoring record ( surpassed by Casey Pierro - Zabotel in 2008 – 09 ) . During the campaign , he was chosen to a squad of WHL All - Stars against the Russian select team in the 2004 ADT Canada - Russia Challenge in November . Several months later , he competed in the 2005 CHL Top Prospects Game , where he recorded the first hat trick in the history of the all - star match and was named Team Cherry ' s player of the game . At the end of the season , Brulé was named the CHL Scholastic Player of the Year , having taken more high school credits than any other WHL player . NHL debut and Memorial Cup tournament . Brulé was selected sixth overall in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft by the Columbus Blue Jackets . He remained the highest - drafted Giants player in team history until Evander Kane was selected fourth overall in 2009 . Brulé had been the second - ranked prospect behind Crosby by the International Scouting Services ( ISS ) at the beginning of the 2004 – 05 season , while the NHL Central Scouting Bureau ( CSB ) named him the WHL ' s top prospect in their preliminary rankings . By the end of the season , Brulé was ranked fourth overall by the ISS and fifth among North American skaters by the CSB . At the time of his draft , he was touted as an offensively skilled player with a competitive and physical edge . The ISS scouted him as an " outstanding skater with great vision on the ice . . . a natural goalscorer . " Brulé made the Blue Jackets ' lineup in his first NHL training camp and signed with the club to a three - year , entry - level contract on October 3 , 2005 . He made his NHL debut against the Washington Capitals in the Blue Jackets ' season opener two days later , notching an assist on a goal by Dan Fritsche in a 3 – 1 loss . The following game , he suffered a fractured sternum after receiving a hit from Calgary Flames defenceman Roman Hamrlík on October 7 . After missing 17 games , he returned to the lineup on November 20 . Brulé scored his first NHL career goal that night against Phoenix Coyotes , his team ' s lone tally in a 5 – 1 loss , beating goaltender David LeNeveu with a shot from the left offensive zone faceoff circle . Ten days later , he suffered his second injury in as many months , breaking his leg during a game against the Minnesota Wild . Upon recovering , he was returned to the WHL on January 13 , 2006 . By re - assigning Brulé before he played 10 NHL games , the Blue Jackets retained the first year of his rookie contract . Another strong factor in the decision to return him to junior was the acquisition of centre Sergei Fedorov , making Brulé expendable . Returning to the Giants , Brulé scored at a near - goal - a - game pace . He was named WHL Player of the Week on February 20 , 2006 , after recording 5 goals and 10 points in 3 Giants wins . He was later chosen as WHL Player of the Month for February with 12 goals and 23 points in 13 games . Completing the season with 23 goals and 38 points in 27 games , he earned WHL Second All - Star Team honours . In the opening round of the WHL playoffs , Brulé was named WHL and CHL Player of the Week by scoring four goals and seven points over three games against the Prince George Cougars . He received his second WHL and CHL Player of the Week honour during the WHL Finals against the Moose Jaw Warriors on May 10 , having accumulated five goals and nine points in two games . His award - winning week included a three - goal , four - point performance in Game 1 of the series – a 7 – 5 win for the Giants . He went on to lead the WHL in scoring with 30 points in 18 games to earn the airBC Trophy as playoff MVP , helping the Giants to their first President ' s Cup as WHL champions . Advancing to the 2006 Memorial Cup , the Giants tied for third out of four teams after the round - robin . Requiring a tie - breaker game to determine who would play in the semi - final , Brulé recorded five points ( two goals , three assists ) against the Peterborough Petes , one point short of the tournament single - game record , in a 6 – 0 win . The Giants were subsequently eliminated in the semi - final by the Moncton Wildcats 3 – 1 . Brulé registered the only Giants goal in the game . Finishing with 12 points in 5 games , Brulé earned the Ed Chynoweth Trophy as the national tournament ' s leading scorer . He was also named to the Memorial Cup All - Star Team , alongside Giants teammate Paul Albers . Four - and - a - half years after his junior career , the club honoured him in a ceremony prior to a game against the Kamloops Blazers on January 28 , 2011 , as part of " Gilbert Brulé Night " . Brulé was the fourth alumnus added to the club ' s Ring of Honour , commemorating the team ' s best players ; a plaque was unveiled inside the stadium bearing his name and the number 17 he wore on his jersey as a Giant . At the end of the Giants ' 2010 – 11 WHL season , they released their fan - voted " Top 10 Giants of the Decade " , which listed Brulé at # 2 , behind Milan Lucic . Columbus Blue Jackets . Still eligible for junior , Brulé made the Blue Jackets ' roster for the 2006 – 07 season . A month into the campaign , he was assured by general manager Doug MacLean that he would not be returned to the Giants as he had been the previous season . He was scratched several times under head coach Gerard Gallant , but after Gallant was replaced by Ken Hitchcock in late - November , he began receiving more playing time . Playing mostly on the fourth line in his rookie season , he averaged 10 minutes of ice time per game . He went on to tally 19 points ( 9 goals and 10 assists ) over 78 games in his first full NHL season . During his second NHL season , Brulé recorded 9 points ( 1 goal and 8 assists ) over 61 games with the Blue Jackets . He was sent down to the American Hockey League ( AHL ) in January 2008 for a month - long assignment as his play struggled , notching 5 goals and 10 points in 16 games with the Blue Jackets ' minor league affiliate , the Syracuse Crunch . At the end of the Blue Jackets ' regular season , Brulé was re - assigned to Syracuse for the club ' s Calder Cup playoff run . Helping the Crunch advance to the second round , he recorded 2 goals and 5 points over 13 post - season games . Edmonton Oilers . In the 2008 off - season , Brulé was traded to the Edmonton Oilers for forward Raffi Torres on July 1 , 2008 . He was one of the final cuts in his first training camp with the Oilers and was assigned to the Springfield Falcons , Edmonton ' s AHL affiliate . On October 17 , 2008 , he suffered a knee - on - knee hit from opposing defenceman Adam McQuaid during a game against the Providence Bruins , causing him to miss several contests injured . During a call - up to the NHL later in the season , Brulé scored his first goal with the Oilers on January 11 , 2009 , in a 2 – 1 win against the St . Louis Blues . He was re - assigned to Springfield 10 days later . Finishing the season with 3 points in 11 games with the Oilers and 24 points in 39 games with the Falcons , he was re - signed by Edmonton in the off - season to a one - year , two - way contract on August 12 , 2009 . Brulé began the 2009 – 10 season as the Oilers ' fourth - line centre out of training camp . With improved play and the injury of first - line winger Ales Hemsky , Brulé moved up the Oilers ' depth chart and recorded his best statistical season in the NHL . However , after suffering from a recurring flu throughout the campaign , which sidelined him for a combined 11 games , he suffered a high - ankle sprain during a game against the Dallas Stars on April 2 , 2010 ; following a collision with opposing forward Brian Sutherby , his skate got jammed underneath goaltender Kari Lehtonen ' s pad . The injury sidelined him for the remaining week of the campaign . He finished the season with a career - high 17 goals , 20 assists and 37 points in 65 games , third in team - scoring . Becoming a restricted free agent in the 2010 off - season , Brulé filed for arbitration with the Oilers after failing to come to terms on a new contract . The two sides managed to avoid their arbitration hearing by signing a two - year , $ 3 . 7 million deal on July 27 , 2010 . After staying healthy through the first three months of the 2010 – 11 season , Brulé suffered continued injury problems for the rest of the campaign . After being sidelined with a stomach virus for four games , he suffered an abdominal injury the following month and missed 23 additional contests . After returning to the lineup , he sustained a concussion during a game against the Pittsburgh Penguins on March 13 , 2011 . In total , Brulé missed 39 games with injuries in 2010 – 11 , limiting him to 7 goals and 2 assists . On June 24 , 2011 , it was reported that Brulé had been traded along with a fourth - round draft pick to the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for forward Ryan Smyth . Due to health concerns , the deal never officially materialized as Brulé had not yet been cleared to play following his concussion ( under league rules , an injured player can be traded but cannot be bought out which is what the Kings had planned on doing ) . Furthermore , Kings general manager Dean Lombardi made it apparent to the media that the team wanted someone with a smaller salary cap hit . The Oilers ultimately acquired Smyth in exchange for forward Colin Fraser and a seventh - round pick in the 2012 draft . . On October 2 , 2011 , Brulé was placed on waivers with the purpose of being assigned with the Oklahoma City Barons . International play . Brulé made his international debut with Hockey Canada representing Team Pacific at the 2004 World U17 Hockey Challenge in Newfoundland . During the semi - final , he scored a goal and three assists , leading Team Pacific to a win against the United States . His efforts earned him his third player of the game award of the tournament . In the gold medal game , Team Pacific lost to Team Ontario 5 – 2 , earning silver . Later that year , he represented Team Canada in the 2004 U18 Junior World Cup as an alternate captain . Brulé helped lead Team Canada to gold , scoring the game winning goal in the championship match , a 4 – 1 win against the Czech Republic . The following year , Brulé participated in the Canadian national junior team ' s summer development camp in preparation for the 2006 World Junior Championships . At the time of the final roster selection in December 2005 , however , Brulé was recovering from a leg injury , suffered during NHL play with the Blue Jackets . He was invited to the team ' s summer camp again in 2006 , but declined , choosing to focus instead on making the roster for Columbus . Personal life . Brulé was born in Edmonton , Alberta , later moving to North Vancouver , British Columbia , during his childhood . He had a sister named Leah who passed away at the age of 12 from cerebral palsy . Brulé was nine years old at the time of his sister ' s death and later had her name tattooed on his left wrist . Despite growing up in both Edmonton and Vancouver , Brulé was a childhood fan of the Los Angeles Kings . In May 2010 , Brulé donated $ 10 , 000 to a fund assisting an Edmonton boy suffering from lymphatic cystic hydroma . The money was allocated to a costly surgery to be performed in New York , which doctors in Canada were unable to perform . Brulé received further media attention a year later for picking up a pair of hitchhikers who turned out to be U2 frontman Bono and his assistant in a West Vancouver neighbourhood on May 31 , 2011 . In return , Brulé was given backstage passes for him , as well as his girlfriend and mother , for U2 ' s concert in Edmonton on the next day . During the show , Bono thanked Brulé for the ride .