Daniel Jean-Claude Brière (born October 6, 1977) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player and executive. He was drafted in the first round of the 1996 NHL Entry Draft by the Phoenix Coyotes, and also played for the Buffalo Sabres, Philadelphia Flyers, Montreal Canadiens and Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League (NHL). He is best known as one of the top Stanley Cup Playoffs performers in NHL history, with 116 points in 124 career playoff games. Internationally, Brière won four gold medals in as many appearances with Team Canada at the 1994 World U18 Championships, 1997 World Junior Championships, and the 2003 and 2004 World Championships. He currently is the Special Assistant to the General Manager for the Philadelphia Flyers. Playing career Junior Growing up and playing hockey in his hometown Gatineau, Brière played Bantam hockey in 1992–93 for the Abitibi Regents before graduating to the AAA Gatineau Intrepide of the Quebec Midget League for the 1993–94 season. In his first season with the Intrepide, the team captured the bronze medal at the 1994 Air Canada Cup, where Briere was the top scorer and named Top Forward. Soon after, he was drafted by the Drummondville Voltigeurs in the 1994 QMJHL Draft. Brière's number 14 was retired by this team, on January 21, 2007, during a ceremony in the Marcel Dionne Center of Drummondville. In his rookie season, he recorded 123 points, third overall in the league, was awarded the Michel Bergeron Trophy as league rookie of the year, and the Marcel Robert Trophy as scholastic player of the year. The following season, he improved to 163 points, earning the Jean Béliveau Trophy as the league's leading scorer. He was also named the QMJHL Humanitarian of the Year and awarded the Ford Cup as offensive player of the year. Despite a remarkable six-game, 18-point post-season effort from Brière, Drummondville was not able to advance from the divisional round-robin. After Brière was drafted by the Phoenix Coyotes in the first round, 24th overall, in the 1996 NHL Entry Draft, he returned to Drummondville for one more season. He recorded 130 points, finishing in the top three in league scoring for the third consecutive season, and was awarded the Frank J. Selke Memorial Trophy as the most sportsmanlike player. Phoenix Coyotes and AHL Graduating from major junior, Brière split his first four seasons in the NHL between the Coyotes and their