""I've been kicked in the head a lot," he told The Athletic this week."
"Hagel already made an international name for himself when he squared off with his Panther foil Matthew Tkachuk at the very beginning of USA-Canada during the 4 Nations last year."
"In Game 1, he contributed a pair of goals, including the one that sent the teams to overtime in an eventual Lightning loss."
"In Game 2, Hagel found the net first with a kind of screw-it-why-not shot from distance, then picked up an assist in the third period."
Brandon Hagel has been an essential player for the Tampa Bay Lightning, excelling as a two-way forward and penalty killer. He achieved a career-high of 36 goals and 90 points last season, contributing significantly to the team's playoff success. Hagel's journey from being traded from Chicago to becoming a standout player illustrates Tampa's ability to thrive under salary cap constraints. Despite his success, he maintains a gritty demeanor, reflecting on past rejections from teams that overlooked him.
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