The Associated Press

COLUMBUS - When Rick Nash was growing up in Brampton, Ontario, he kept a close watch on the NHL exploits of another native son, Andrew Cassels.

Now Nash, one of the bright young stars in the league, hangs his skates just a few feet away from Cassels in the Columbus Blue Jackets' dressing room. And he's still keeping his eyes on him.

"He's sort of been an inspiration for me - knowing that he made it from my hometown," Nash said.

Cassels - "the perfect professional" according to teammate Kevin Dineen - played for Montreal, Hartford, Calgary and Vancouver in his 12 years in the NHL before signing a free agent contract with the Blue Jackets last summer.

His job isn't to score goals or to set them up so much as to win games. He came to Columbus, in part, because he was wanted and because he wanted a new beginning with a team looking ahead.

"My job is to do anything I can to help the team," Cassels said. "It's part of my game to create offensive chances for guys on my line and whoever I'm playing with. Scoring goals is not the main concern, but obviously it's going to help the team win hockey games."

Cassels is the type of player that you build a team around - and people still won't notice. Durable, quiet, efficient and solid, he brings out the best in his teammates and does it without flair and without calling attention to himself.

"He's a great guy. He's a great team guy," Columbus forward Sean Pronger said. "He's got skills. He's proved that throughout his career. And he plays hard every game."

From 1990 through last year, he averaged 14 goals and 38 assists a year. To put into perspective what a coup it was to sign him, those numbers over the last two seasons would have made him the franchise's career points leader.

Columbus coach Dave King said Cassels has played well all season.

"He was making plays and things weren't finishing, and he was frustrated by that," King said. "He's a guy who gets a real kick out of setting somebody up to score."

Over the years, teams have come to bank on Cassels. He shows up almost every night - he has averaged 72 games a season over the last decade - and is a steadying influence on and off the ice.

"Cass is so smooth and such a smart hockey player," Dineen said. "He's always in the right position. I was lucky enough to play with him for a couple of years at Hartford. He just makes the game really easy. He does so many good things."

Cassels has done his part to make Nash, the overall No. 1 pick in this summer's draft, feel at home with the Blue Jackets.

"I'm sure he hasn't heard of me like I've heard of him," Nash said. "I didn't really expect him to."

But Cassels, who still visits Brampton in the summers, did know of Nash. He got firsthand reports. Nash's junior coaches included Cassels' brother and his best friend.

Each night, Nash gets a close-up of how Cassels prepares, how he handles pressure, how he handles the puck. Over an 82-game season, it's more than just showing up, swinging away and having the puck slide into the net.

So the two of them - one the 18-year-old future of the franchise and the other a local legend who is 33 - have gotten to be friends in another country, far from Brampton.

"It's such a small world," Cassels said with a smile.