Brampton Beast‘s 7th year right wing Brandon Marino(22) has definitely been playing for few accolades through his pro career but he keeps on chugging and pushing the envelope open a little wider with each passing season.
The small 5’9″ 185 lbs. forward has been rewarded with an 8 game recall by Utica Comets and posted his first AHL goal.
He’s only ever had one other game in the higher league in early 2013 with Norfolk Admirals.
Otherwise, he’s spent the last few years except for 2014/2015, when he took off for Austria to skate with Szefkezfehervar doing ok scoring 11 goals and 28 assists in 50 games.
He has the ability to put up points at a more than one per game pace in the ECHL from 2012-2014 with Fort Wayne Komets and lead the league with 88 points and 58 assists in 2013/2014 and was 2nd with 54 the previous year.
Through his first three seasons he joined Quad City Mallards, first in the old IHL, then in Central Hockey League.
His 41 goals in 2011/2012 were tops in the league and his was voted MVP and All-Star Game MVP.
It’s almost a little odd why the 29-year old hasn’t been given more opportunities to produce on the next level.
Manchester Monarchs‘ undrafted rookie left wing Zac Larraza(15) has got to be enjoying his first year despite mostly playing hockey at a level that might be a bit below where he should be.
Originally an Arizona Coyotes‘ 7th round pick in the 2011 draft (#196 overall) the Scottsdale, AZ native got to realize the dream of being selected by his favorite team but was unfortunately left unsigned.
The nicely sized 6’2″ 200 lbs. forward plays with a lot of energy, intensity and accountability out there and definitely knows how to affect a score sheet.
In only 23 ECHL games he already has a hefty 13 goals and 7 assists with a +15 rating.
He’s also been loaned up on three occasions and had points with each club.
First, with Portland Pirates for a couple games notching 1 assist, then to Milwaukee Admirals for 10 contests scoring 2 goals and another assist and most recently with San Diego Gulls, where he had one tally and a helper in 7 appearances to bring his total to 3 goals and 3 assists in 19 AHL games.
He started with a couple seasons in the USHL skating for the US National Team Development Program, then stayed close home accepting entry to University Of Denver, putting together three 20-point campaigns.
The soon-to-be 23-year old seems to be just getting started.
Washington Capitals‘ 4th year center Paul Carey(28) potted his first NHL goal with his new team on his 2nd recall.
He looks to eclipse the scoring mark he set as a rookie with Lake Erie Monsters, while under contract to Colorado Avalanche (19-22-41 in 72 games).
In 43 AHL games with affiliate Hershey Bears he already has 13 goals and 18 assists.
The decently sized forward spent close to three years playing for the team that drafted him but was traded late last season to hometown team Boston Bruins before being reassigned to Providence Bruins, where he stayed for the remainder of the season.
A week into his first unrestricted free agency he was signed to a one-year two-way deal.
The now 27-year old was recently sent back down to the minors but looks to be making a bid to stay put in the big league, adding to the 26 games he appeared in.
Buffalo Sabres‘ 3rd round pick in the 2011 draft (#77 overall) 3rd year center/right wing Daniel Catenacci(43) gets his first NHL game under his belt on recall from affiliate Rochester Americans.
For his debut he skated 11 shifts at sparing 7:42 minutes of ice time with 2 shots, 3 hits and one take away in a 2-1 overtime loss on a penalty shot tally.
The small 5’9″ but solid 191 lbs. forward was putting up some ok numbers in the minors and plays with a good amount of grit for his size, when he was summoned.
He looks to be on par with last seasons’ bests scoring 7 goals and 9 assists in 36 AHL games.
In his final three years of juniors, one with Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds and two skating for Owen Sound Attack he was a more than a point-per-game producer before turning pro at the end of 2012/2013 signing an ato.
In his first pair of contests with the Amerks he potted his first goal and added a two assists.
The soon-to-be 23 year old is at the final year of his entry level deal and set to become a restricted free agent at the conclusion of the current campaign.
The parent club must like what they are seeing. It should be a no-brainer to keep him around.
Florida Panthers‘ 7th year defenseman Brent Regner(37) signed a two-year two-way deal on opening day of unrestricted free agency and is realizing his first NHL recall and game through a career that was certainly promising coming out of the gate but went through a period on a pair of minor league contracts and even a couple games in the ECHL to finding his way back on the big league payroll.
In his debut, he skated 16 shifts for 12:22 of ice time including :15 shorthanded. He had had 1 shot, 2 hits, 1 breakup and 1 giveaway with a 0 rating in a 3-2 overtime loss.
The 26-year could be just getting started now that he’s finally found the show, as he plays a hard-hitting style in the defensive zone and can move the puck for offense.
He averages 20 assists a year in the AHL. With 12 already in the current season with affiliate Portland Pirates he looks to once again reach that mark.
Regardless of what happens this is a feel good story already for an almost forgotten former 5th round pick.
Pittsburgh Penguins‘ 3rd round pick in the 2012 draft (#81 overall) Swedish-born rookie center Oskar Sundqvist(40) received his first NHL recall at the midway point of the 2015/2016 season.
The fairly sizable 6’3″ 209 lbs. power forward played a decent 14 shifts for 11:11 of total ice time with 1 shot on net, 1 break up and went 37% in the face off dot in what turned into a 6-3 drubbing.
A late cut from the parent club’s training camp last season and was summoned back up early with no appearance, he’s been decent to start his first campaign on reassignment with affiliate Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins scoring 5 goals and 11 assists with a -1 rating in 39 AHL contests on a top tier squad. He’s in all likelihood still getting his game adjusted.
The soon-to-turn 22-year old already had two years plus pro experience skating with Skelleftea AIK and even won the 2014 SHL Championship adding four goals and two assists in 13 playoff match-ups.
Signed to a three-year entry level deal he was allowed to spend the 2014/2015 in his home country to continue his development but did come over and appeared in one Calder Cup Playoff game with the farm team.
We shall see if this one rises to the top.
Florida Panthers‘ 3rd round pick in the 2011 draft (#91 overall) rookie center Kyle Rau(42) is turning heads in his first year with affiliate Portland Pirates.
The pint-size 5’8″ 178 lbs. forward of course leads other first year players in scoring but he’s 2nd in goals at 15 and his 24 points are third overall.
He’s been fairly clutch in the minor league team’s ascent up the AHL standings.
It’s not exactly uncharted territory for the player. He was a point per game guy through 4 years at University Of Minnesota and named captain as a junior and senior.
Upon signing his two-year entry level deal, he was assigned to play with San Antonio Rampage. In 7 games he scored a pair of goals and one assist, then appeared in one postseason contest.
Even though the parent club is hot, they may pull him up to have a looksie.
Colorado Avalanche 10th year defenseman Nate Guenin(5) was on quite the little journey through the minors before landing in his current home of the last three seasons.
Prior to signing a one-year deal as an unrestricted free agent, then re-upping for another two he spent his first full season in the AHL as captain of Anaheim Ducks‘ affiliate Norfolk Admirals.
That situation was probably a wake-up call the aging d-man needed to put that little extra into his game to become a full-time player in the big league.
Previously he’d played a smattering of NHL games with his first team of three years Philadelphia Flyers, then one in Pittsburgh Penguins‘ organization, half a season for Columbus Blue Jackets before almost another 3 with the Ducks.
He was originally a New York Rangers‘ 4th round pick in the 2002 draft (#127 overall) but never signed.
A veteran of 205 games in the show and 441 in the minors, he’s never put up outstanding numbers, instead the 6’3″ 207 lbs. blue liner plays mostly a punishing presence in his own zone holding down a career +7 rating up and +28 when on reassignment.
At 33-years old he could be given another season to stay put but may also be released. In 29 games he has no points and has been in and out of the lineup as a healthy scratch.
St. Louis Blues‘ 5th year center Pat Cannone(12) continues to elevate his play with age.
The 29-year old forward has been a story of chip-chip chip away at it and it will start to come loose.
After two seasons in Ottawa Senators‘ farm system playing for Binghamton Senators, his sophomore campaign didn’t go quite as well on the score sheet as his rookie year did, but he turned a -7 into a tied for 2nd +21 rating.
It wasn’t enough to keep him around for the final year of his contract as he was traded in the off season to St. Louis for future considerations (bag of rocks).
Impressive in his first run with affiliate Chicago Wolves scoring 16 goals and 18 assists and he had a team leading +24 plus/minus.
That was good enough for the parent club to sign him up to a one-year extension and he became an assist captain for the minor league club. He set new personal highs for assists (33 – 1st), points (47 – 2nd) and his +11 was also good enough for 2nd on the squad.
It was in the postseason that he really started setting his current pace though, as he notched 6 assists in 5 Calder Cup Playoffs games.
Given another 1-year contract, he was named captain for 2015/2016 and is on pace to record new best marks in all categories.
In 41 games he has 16 goals, 21 assists with a +14 and he also looks to be shooting the puck on net with way more frequency at 87.
He recently was named MVP for the Central Division in the 2016 AHL All-Star Game getting 3 goals and an assist with a +2 in the victory.
Although he has yet to earn an NHL recall and there are maybe younger prospects ahead of him, he has put in the effort to see what he can do up in the big league.
Ottawa Senators‘ 2nd year left wing Ryan Dzingel(43) received his 1st NHL recall in what is a contract year for the skater.
He played a sparingly used 7 shifts for 5:25 minutes of ice time with 1 hit, 2 penalty minutes, went 50% in the face off dot and was a -1 rating in a 2-1 shootout loss.
The small-ish forward leads affiliate Binghamton Senators in assists with 24 and is tied for the lead in points at 36.
He was tops for all rookies last season with his 17-17-34 totals and finished four on the team in goal scoring.
His marks in 43 AHL games this season has eclipsed what he put up last year and it looks like he will reach new peaks.
The 23-year is set to become a restricted free agent at the end of current campaign but seems like an easy bet to receive a qualifying offer and stay in the system.
