Few D.C. natives played for the local pro teams It’s not the same Capitals organization that Jeff Halpern left five years ago.
Recommended Stories
Back then, Halpern, born in the District and raised in suburban Maryland, was captain of his hometown NHL team. But this was before “Rock the Red” and Kettler Iceplex, before sellout crowds and blockbuster television ratings, before Winter Classic caravans to Pittsburgh in the dead of winter. Alex Ovechkin was a rookie, but the Caps had become an afterthought on the local sports scene.
“In my mind it was still a good organization,” said Halpern, who spent the first six years of his NHL career with Washington, left as a free agent after the 2005-06 season and returns this fall after signing a one-year contract with the club in July. “The biggest thing now is how big the fan base has grown. Some things become easier for an organization to do when you have that.”
Halpern is expected to anchor the team’s fourth line at center this season, a veteran presence now at 35 whose experience here as captain should also help Ovechkin, who is still adjusting to that leadership role at 25. Weeks before most of his teammates arrived at the team’s Arlington, Va., practice complex, Halpern was putting in hard hours of training at Kettler Iceplex, another advantage to playing at home.
Halpern said he never completely wrote off returning to the Caps. Too many things change too quickly in the NHL to ever do that. In a way, this summer was similar to 1999 when Halpern graduated from Princeton and was an undrafted free agent looking for the best landing spot. He had interest from several teams. But Washington had just jettisoned some of its veterans after a disappointing season and had openings at center. It was a perfect fit. And even now Halpern sees few pitfalls to playing at home.
“I hadn’t really put any pressure or onus on coming back to Washington other than friends I grew up with and the local hockey community,” Halpern said. “There was a big deal made that I was from Washington, but for me at the time I still had to make the team and I still had to stick with the team and always prove myself. That would have happened anywhere.”
The Caps were a pretty good club his first four years in the NHL. Halpern scored 18 goals in his rookie season and another 21 as a second-year pro. As always, Washington struggled in the playoffs. The Caps won the Southeast Division both years, but twice lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins in the first round. They then missed the postseason in 2002-03 and were shocked in the first round by the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2003-04. That began the painful rebuilding process that continued even after Halpern departed for the Dallas Stars. Now, following stints with Tampa Bay, the Los Angeles Kings and the Montreal Canadiens, Halpern has come full circle.
“Hockey has grown so much in this area,” Halpern said. “And whether that’s kids growing up playing hockey or just the fan base growing, there’s more of a spotlight on hockey, on the Caps. It’s become a cool thing to do where it used to be if you mentioned anything besides the Redskins you were laughed at in this city. I think people are beginning to appreciate the sport and how good our players are.”
Some limited history of staying in the area
Few professional athletes from the immediate Washington D.C. area have had the same experience as Capitals center Jeff Halpern. He was born at Georgetown University Hospital, raised in Rockville and Potomac, Md., and his dad, Mel, was a Caps season-ticket holder for years.
Halpern is as local as they come. And in the annals of Washington sports teams he is a rarity. Only one other area athlete has played as many seasons with their hometown team as Halpern, who returns to Washington this season for his seventh year with the Caps. Jake Powell (Silver Spring), an outfielder who won four World Series with the Yankees between 1936 and 1939, spent parts of seven seasons with the Senators.
The Redskins have a pair of running backs from metro Washington in Tim Hightower (Alexandria, Va./Episcopal High) and Evan Royster (Chantilly, Va./Westfield High). But Hightower was acquired via trade last month and Royster is a rookie. The longest-tenured locals to play for the Redskins were defensive back Shawn Springs, a second-team All-Pro in 2004 who went to Springbrook High, and wide receiver Leslie Shepherd, a Washington native who played here five years from 1994 to 1998.
Dave Bing (Spingarn High), an NBA Hall of Famer and now the mayor of Detroit, returned to his hometown in 1975 and spent two of the last three years of a brilliant NBA career with the Bullets. But while he had a fine season in 1975-76, making one last All-Star team, he was fading at age 32. Only 16 players born in the District or surrounding suburbs have worn the Bullets/Wizards uniform and of those only Bing and shooting guard Roger Mason Jr. (Good Counsel High/University of Virginia) spent even two seasons with the club.
Because Washington was without a baseball team for 34 years and the area isn’t a top talent producer, there aren’t many hometown heroes in that sport. Pitcher Joe Engel, a District native, appeared in 100 games with the Senators from 1912 to 1915. Tom Brown (Silver Spring, Md./Blair High/Bullis Prep) had the unique distinction of playing one year for the Senators in 1963 before spending the rest of the decade at defensive back for Vince Lombardi’s Green Bay Packers and one single game with the Redskins in 1969. And Justin Maxwell (Olney, Md./Sherwood High) was one of the Nationals’ first draft picks after the team moved here from Montreal. He was chosen in the fourth round of the 2005 draft and played in 122 games over three years with Washington.
D.C. United has had its share of local soccer talent. Freddy Adu was born in Ghana, but his family emigrated to Rockville in 1996. At age 14, he became the youngest North American athlete to play in a pro game and helped United win an MLS title. Springfield, Va. native Brian Carroll was also a key player on that team, starting 26 games en route to the championship. He was with United through 2007. Current United goalie Bill Hamid was born in Annandale, Va., and has local teammates in Andy Najar (Alexandria, Va./Edison High) and Ethan White (Kensington, Md./Bethesda-Chevy Chase High).
The WNBA’s Mystics currently employ District native Monique Curry (Bullis Prep), Jasmine Thomas (Fairfax, Va./Oakton High) and Marissa Coleman (Cheltenham, Md./St. John’s High).
