Washington Capitals‘ 7th year center Zach Sill(23) played an entire campaign in the NHL splitting time in 2014/2015 with his team of 5+ seasons Pittsburgh Penguins and then was traded to Toronto Maple Leafs late to finish out the calendar.
The unrestricted free agent was signed to a new one-year deal with his third team.
He would start the new season as a late training camp cut reassigned to affiliate Hershey Bears, where he was named as an assistant captain.
Rather than pouting about playing in the minors again, he got right to business and popped in a pair of goals and 7 assists in 30 AHL games with a +6 rating.
His efforts would be noticed, earning his first recall just after the Christmas holiday.
In 5 games he scored his 1st goal (2nd overall) with his new squad and is earning more playing time, skating 17 shifts for 13:35 total ice in his last game and was 43% in the face off dot. He also got his tally on his only shot on net making that 100% accuracy.
The now 27-year old is playing like he wants to stick with the big club and could be given that opportunity.
4th year defenseman Jeremie Blain(5) has already been on quite the little journey in his pro hockey career.
After being a 2nd round pick in the QMJHL draft by Victoriaville Tigres, he was sent to Acadie-Bathurst Titan for the balance of three years and then traded back to end his run in junior hockey.
He would finish the season with a new high 9 goals and 41 assists for 50 points and was also an Edmonton Oilers‘ 4th round pick in the 2011 draft (#91 overall) before this campaign.
The 6’3″ 200 lbs. blue liner never signed with them though and inked his first contract with Chicago Wolves.
He split time his rookie season playing more ECHL games with Idaho Steelheads but scoring a decent amount of points with a +11 rating that got him noticed by Vancouver Canucks, who signed him to a three-year entry level deal.
In his first year under contract, he would skate only 14 games with new affiliate Utica Comets but once again skate the majority of his games in the lower league for Kalamazoo Wings.
Through 25 games he excelled with 3 goals, 12 assists and a +16.
Things didn’t pick up in 2014/2015 either as he spent an even greater amount of time with the Wings (41 games) and less time with the Comets (6) but as was his trend scored 5 goals, equaled his highest total of 24 assists and fired an average of 2 shots on net per contest.
Heading into the 2015/2016 it was agreed to terminate his NHL deal and he re-signed with Chicago Wolves.
The 23-year old would get reassigned to Brampton Beast to start and lit it up immediately collecting two goals and 20 assists in 31 games, earning a recall.
In two games he has put in his first AHL goal and seems to be fitting in nicely. With all the injuries to parent club St. Louis Blues, he could just find himself sticking around.
Vancouver Canucks‘ 4th year, Switzerland-born left wing Sven Baerschi(47) is enjoying his first full season of NHL action.
In 33 games he has 6 goals, 7 assists for 13 points with a +2 rating.
Heck, through his career his totals definitely point towards production.
In 106 games overall he has 16 goals and 27 assists playing limited time and roles for the parent club.
Originally a Calgary Flames‘ 1st round pick in the 2011 draft (#13 overall), it tough to see what they failed to see in his game but in 51 games he had 8 goals 16 assists through parts of three years.
The 5’11” (seems a tad generous) 190 lbs. was traded in exchange for a 2nd round pick (bag of rocks) and has found life in further west Canada.
Upon his arrival he struck for 2 goals in 3 games with the Canucks and even appeared in a pair of Stanley Cup Playoff games.
On reassignment to affiliate Utica Comets, he had 7 goals and 8 assists in 15 AHL games, then another 8-7-15 performance in 21 games all the way to the 2015 Calder Cup Finals in the team’s 2nd year of existence.
The 23-year is set to become a restricted free agent at the end of the current campaign after signing a 0ne-year one-way extension.
We say contract negotiations for a couple more years should happen.
Toronto Maple Leafs‘ rookie right wing prospect, Finnish-born Kasperi Kapanen(42) was permitted to play the 2015 World Juniors’ Championship hosted in Helsinki.
He would score the overtime goal to solidify his country’s second win in the tournament in three years.
Originally a Pittsburgh Penguins‘ 1st round pick in the 2014 draft (#22 overall), he was a piece of the puzzle in the Phil Kessel trade.
He actually appeared in 2014 training camp and was a late cut before being sent back overseas to continue his development.
It was his second season in Liiga with KalPa and he even appeared in 13 games with the team as a 16-year old, while playing under 20 junior hockey.
He returned at the end of the season to join Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, where he picked up a goal and an assist in his first 4 AHL games, then made even further strides in the postseason notching another 3 goals and 2 assists in 7 contests.
At 5’11” 180 lbs. he isn’t exactly power forward size yet but plays a swift skating, great puck control style game.
He has yet to score his first recall to the big club but with affiliate Toronto Marlies he has 5 goals and 5 assists with a +6 rating in 17 games with the league’s top team.
No doubt the 19-year has a bright future as a goal-scorer and his opportunity to prove it at the highest level may come soon.
He is also the son of former 13-year NHL veteran mini-might Sami Kapanen, which makes this one another good hockey story.
Toronto Maple Leafs‘ rookie right wing prospect, Finnish-born Kasperi Kapanen(42) was permitted to play the 2015 World Juniors’ Championship hosted in Helsinki.
He would score the overtime goal to solidify his country’s second win in the tournament in three years.
Originally a Pittsburgh Penguins‘ 1st round pick in the 2014 draft (#22 overall), he was a piece of the puzzle in the Phil Kessel trade.
He actually appeared in 2014 training camp and was a late cut before being sent back overseas to continue his development.
It was his second season in Liiga with KalPa and he even appeared in 13 games with the team as a 16-year old, while playing under 20 junior hockey.
He returned at the end of the season to join Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, where he picked up a goal and an assist in his first 4 AHL games, then made even further strides in the postseason notching another 3 goals and 2 assists in 7 contests.
At 5’11” 180 lbs. he isn’t exactly power forward size yet but plays a swift skating, great puck control style game.
He has yet to score his first recall to the big club but with affiliate Toronto Marlies he has 5 goals and 5 assists with a +6 rating in 17 games with the league’s top team.
No doubt the 19-year has a bright future as a goal-scorer and his opportunity to prove it at the highest level may come soon.
He is also the son of former 13-year NHL veteran mini-might Sami Kapanen, which makes this one another good hockey story.
Washington Capitals‘ 7th year net minder Braden Holtby(70) is making 2015/2016 look like a Vezina Trophy winning season.
He leads the league with 25 wins in 32 starts and has a 1.93 GAA and .932 SV% on a team that currently sits atop the NHL in victories and points.
In 2014/2015, the 6’2″ 217 lbs. back stop had the most games played with 73, shots allowed 2044 and saves at 1887. He finished 2nd with 41 wins.
He’s been up with the big club exclusively for the last few seasons but spent his first four campaigns split mostly with long-time affiliate Hershey Bears and helped the team to a 2010 Calder Cup Championship.
The now only 26-year old even spent time in the ECHL to start his pro career with South Carolina Stingrays and got the nod for their 2010 All-Star Game.
He would get the same distinction next season in the AHL and was selected for this year’s NHL All-Star festivities.
No doubt this is a player that’s learned to play well under pressure and help his squads win.
He signed a 5-year extension through 2019/2020 and there’s really only one small trophy remaining, the Stanley Cup and the Caps look like front runners to claim that prize.
New York Rangers‘ 4th year center Jayson Megna(23) signed a one-year, 1-way deal at the beginning of free agency as an unrestricted player, having just turned 25 and was at the end of his short-term contract extension with Pittsburgh Penguins.
The 6’1″ 195 lbs. forward skated half of his sophomore campaign in the NHL amassing 36 games with 5 goals and 4 assists.
In the following season he would only get into 12 games with the parent club and could only manage 1 assist.
He set new personal records in the minors though, scoring a Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins‘ team leading 26 goals, 13 assists for 39 points and a +18 rating through 63 AHL games.
Starting the 2015/2016 as a late cut from training camp, reassigned to affiliate Hartford Wolf Pack he got right to business and has a 2nd best 11 assists and 18 points to go along with 7 goals and a league leading 110 shots on net.
His hard work has earned him a first recall to the big league.
In his first appearance with his new squad, he played 18 shifts for 11:51 of ice time with one goal, one assist, 3 shots, 1:53 on the power play and a +1 rating in a 6-2 blowout.
He may only be up due to an injured starter but could play his way into some extended time with a performance like his debut.
Ottawa Senators‘ 6th year defenseman (2 in Sweden’s SHL) Fredrik Claesson(49) has finally realized it’s time for his first NHL recall and is making the most of the opportunity.
He welcomes the new year 2016 up with the big club.
In three games, he’s played an escalating amount of shifts and time on ice, culminating in his third appearance in which he was out there 25 times for a fourth best on the team (2nd among blue liners) 20:46.
They also got their first goals and a win in three tries of a 3-2 overtime battle.
He was likely rewarded for his play even after a pair of defeats as his stats are impressive with a total of 3 shots, 5 hits, 5 break ups, 2 takeaways and only one giveaway with a combined 1:36 short-handed time.
The now 23-year old, who signed for a year extension from his original entry level deal, may have just played himself into a more permanent spot in the show.
Ottawa Senators‘ 6th year defenseman (2 in Sweden’s SHL) Fredrik Claesson(49) has finally realized it’s time for his first NHL recall and is making the most of the opportunity.
He welcomes the new year 2016 up with the big club.
In three games, he’s played an escalating amount of shifts and time on ice, culminating in his third appearance in which he was out there 25 times for a fourth best on the team (2nd among blue liners) 20:46.
They also got their first goals and a win in three tries of a 3-2 overtime battle.
He was likely rewarded for his play even after a pair of defeats as his stats are impressive with a total of 3 shots, 5 hits, 5 break ups, 2 takeaways and only one giveaway with a combined 1:36 short-handed time.
The now 23-year old, who signed for a year extension from his original entry level deal, may have just played himself into a more permanent spot in the show.
Toronto Maple Leafs‘ 6th year center Mark Arcobello(33) had the distinction of joining his fifth team in less than a year’s time, when he signed a 1-year tw0-way deal on the opening day of free agency.
He started the season on the parent club’s opening night roster and stuck with them through 7 games but failed to register a point. He was also recalled for a couple more appearances but was still bitten on the score sheet.
In 2014/2015 he was traded to Nashville Predators from his first team Edmonton Oilers, but after only a few games was waived and picked up by Pittsburgh Penguins, where he spent 10 contests only notching a pair of assists.
He was once again placed on waivers to be reassigned to the minors but got scooped by Arizona Coyotes to complete the season on a high note with 9 goals and 7 assists for 16 points, his best with any one squad.
In his last few seasons in the minors he’s maintained some pretty fantastic numbers and this year with Toronto Marlies looks to set new goal scoring marks with already 12 in 24 AHL games.
He scored 22 with Oklahoma City Barons in 2012/2013 with what still looks to be an untouchable 45 assists.
Where the 27-year old ends up next is anyone’s guess but he could very likely command some great money if he decided to split overseas.
