The look of leadership
Guppies' Kelly has come to symbolize what leadership is about
By Reggie Dunlop 

He still has that 1,000-yard stare that serves as a precursor to trouble. The burning, almost painful, desire to win still fires him on a nightly basis, and the unwavering confidence in his skills and his team's ability remains.

In essence, Brian Kelly, even at 28, still has it.

The "it" Kelly possesses is hard to quantify, other than to say it has made him the most revered leader of his generation -- perhaps any generation -- in the sport of hockey. Like great generals or politicians, everything about Kelly promotes blind allegiance and fidelity from others.

"Follow me boys!" his body language screams at all times, whether he is wrong-footing a snap shot for another goal, plastering an attacking player into the boards or addressing the media after a hard-to-take loss.

"As a captain, I think it's important that the players really know who you are and what you stand for, what your beliefs are, and to be consistent in those if things are going good or things are going bad," says Kelly. "You always really have to remain consistent in your beliefs and philosophy."

Simply, Kelly exudes confidence, a confidence that has become more intoxicating throughout the years. 

Kelly has scored 42 goals and 68 points in 28 games over the past three regular seasons. 

 Kelly thrives under pressure a trait that he has shown time and time again. From scoring the tying goal with 3 seconds left in the 2001 semi-finals to scoring the game winning goal against the Knights this season with 20 seconds left.

That trait is what makes Kelly such a great player says Marc Crayton, one of the Guppies Assistant Captains.

"I think anybody who knows what he is about, as a person and as a player, it is like anything else, the player is one thing and you want that player to be effective," says Hitchcock. "It's like everybody else around him all of a sudden becomes accountable.

"Sometimes it is easy when things are spinning out of control to not be accountable. You worry about yourself and things become political and you become guarded in your emotional approach to the game. When you bring a player like Kelly in, he gets rid of all that crap that is in a room and he dissects it into the simplest form. In other words, compete hard, compete with diligence every night, and things will be fine. If you don't, then you get wrath. His wrath, believe me, is not nice. That is what he brings."

It is that innate belief in self and an insistence on personal accountability that has carried Kelly ever since he joined the Guppies to start the 1995 season. He jumped on the ground floor of an Killingworth team that would win its first of four Championships just one year later.

Upon arrival, the Guppies already had a solid nucleus with players like John Carroll, Pete Fink, Steve Fink and Marc Crayton. Quickly, it would add other stars like Rob Murphy, Dave Armenia, Jason Zito, Jason Prozzo, Mike Halle, Tom Mierkiewicz, Brian Mulcahy and goalie Joe Linskey. Yet, Kelly was able to easily carve out his place on a team that would become one of the greatest ever .

Kelly's willingness to do whatever required to win, his ability to intimidate opponents with his physical play, was the needed contrast to a lineup laden with skilled players.

Just 20 when he joined the Guppies, Kelly  watched how those players went about their business, learning his lessons well as he begin his own journey to join the pantheon of hockey legends.

Along the way, he became a great player, but, perhaps, more importantly, Kelly became a great leader.

The Guppies won two Championships in their first four years. While After a short cease in operations and a tough 2001 season Kelly rebuilt the team's psyche and led the reformed squad to Championships in 2002 and 2003; an achievement that cemented his status as one of the game's elite captains.

As usual, Kelly humbly passes on the opportunity to revel in his individual role in building the Guppies' dynasty.