Toronto Maple Leafs‘ 4th round pick in the 2016 draft (#92 overall) third year center Adam Brooks(77) is on a tear in his 1st NHL recall.
The 5’10” 185 lbs. forward has assists in three straight outings after going scoreless in his first two appearances.
Pretty tidy going for a player that has yet to skate 10 minutes a game and even played less than 5 in his debut.
He’s also off to a hot start with affiliate Toronto Marlies scoring 8 goals and 8 assists in 20 AHL games.
This is coming from a player, who was twice overlooked as a selection but did score a huge uptick of 38 goals and WHL leading 82 assists and 120 points to gain notice
In his final, overage session as Regina Pats‘ captain he led the league with 87 assists and had an explosive 43 goals and 130 points.
The 23-year old is set to become a restricted free agent at the end of the current calendar but looks to be an easy shoe-in for a two-year extension, quite possibly on one-way terms.
Pittsburgh Penguins‘ 4th year center, Italian-born Thomas DiPauli(16) has continued to work through injuries to score points earning him a 1st 2 NHL game recall from affiliate Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, where this year he already has 6 goals and 6 assists in 23 AHL games.
In his pair of appearances the 5’11” 188 lbs. forward had a two shots, 4 hits, 1 block and was a -3 rating in an overtime win and loss with a 10-minute misconduct near the end of the last outing.
Originally a Washington Capitals‘ 4th round pick in the 2012 draft (#100 overall), he decided not to sign with the team, instead becoming an unrestricted free agent approaching his rookie season.
He spent 4 years at University Of Notre Dame, where he put up some very decent numbers as a junior and senior, after a pair of campaigns with the USNTDP.
The 25-year old looks to have a good future, especially if he can continue to put together solid numbers in the minors and shouldn’t have a problem extending again.
9th year center Rob Flick(7) takes career high scoring (34 goals) for Eispiraten Crimmitschau to a new deal with DEL2 rivals Ravensburg Towerstars for 2019/2020.
It will be his third campaign overseas that started in 2017/2018 first for 40 EBEL games with Villacher SV getting 7 goals and 16 assists before leaving to join HKM Zvolen of Slovak Tipsport Liga for a playoff run that lasted only 5 outings.
He left after putting up his best offensive numbers while under contract with South Carolina Stingrays, which included 32 assists and 63 points, then exploded in a deep playoff run with 11 goals and 11 assists in 22 playoff contests.
The 28-year old apparently didn’t like his new club despite scoring 6 goals and 1 assist in 9 games because he decided to head back to Austria agreeing to terms with Orli Znojmo and is booming with 12 goals and 16 assists in 20 games and a +11 rating.
Will he stay.
Boston Bruins‘ 2nd round pick in the 2017 draft (#53 overall) rookie center Jack Studnicka(23) earned some space in the show skating some decent minutes in a pair of NHL games just after Thanksgiving scoring an assist while going a +2 rating before being returned to affiliate Providence Bruins, where he has 14 goals and 12 assists for a tied for team best 26 points in 36 AHL games.
The 6’1″ 175 lbs. forward was a monster through four year of the OHL getting 50 assists as captain in his third year with Oshawa Generals and that was the same season he played his first 5 pro games grabbing a goal and 4 assists, so you knew it was looking to connect.
He’s still only in the first year of his entry level deal through 2022 and the soon to turn 21-year old definitely has a bit of time to step into his role at the higher level.
5th year Finnish-born right wing Sebastian Repo(92) opts out of the final year of his Florida Panthers‘ entry level deal to return home and sign with Lukko for the remainder of 2019/2020.
He’s hot from the start too as he’s already tallied 3 goals and 2 assists in 5 Liiga games with a +6 rating.
After completing his 2nd year in Finland’s top league with Tappara scoring 11 goals and 21 assists, he became a 6th round pick in the 2017 draft (#184 overall) but was never recalled from affiliate Springfield Thunderbirds.
His AHL numbers were good but maybe not remarkable enough for a look.
The 23-year old could catch fire and gain another look and that just may happen.
I mean this is a player who as a teenager played in the top two leagues in his home country while also doing half a season in the USHL with Sioux City Musketeers and playoff games, so anything is possible.
Undrafted right wing Dillon Fox(13) proves lots of hard work can get you to the level just below the NHL, if you can continue to keep proving your game.
After playing a full season in the SPHL for now defunct Mississippi River Kings, he tallied 16 goals and 20 assists in 49 games upon completing four years at NCAA Division III SUNY-Plattsburgh getting 9 goals in three of those campaigns and 10+ assists for three 20+ point seasons.
The 5’11” 185 lbs. forward scored a career high 23 goals in his 2nd frame, which caught the attention of Reading Royals, who had him loaned up for a first go at the higher league.
He scored a goal and 2 assists before being returned.
Unfortunately he would need a new home for the next frame as his southern most hockey club would cease operations and he would sign next with Roanoke Rail Yard Dawgs but get called up by Maine Mariners at the turn of the calendar and not look back.
He skated 34 ECHL games grabbing a little crazy 16 goals and 10 assists placing him in the top tier of scoring for the team.
The 28-year old signed a deal to return to the northern New England club and has close to point-per-game totals that got him noticed by Hartford Wolf Pack, who signed him to a pto.
He played 2 AHL games and was returned but an experience no doubt that will last him a lifetime.
Montreal Canadiens‘ 3rd round pick in the 2015 draft (#87 overall) Swedish-born 5th year center Lukas Vejdemo(42) continues to up his game with affiliate Laval Rocket scoring 8 goals and 8 assists in 30 AHL games and gains notice of the parent club for a 1st NHL recall in what is a contract season for the pending restricted free agent.
He’s played a couple of games in limited shifts and minutes but has managed a couple of shots on net in a pair of losses.
The 6’2″ 198 lbs. forward came over with 150 SHL games to his credit with Djurgardens IF, where he played all of his junior hockey as well.
At 23-years old, he looks pretty good to get 1-year extension sooner than later in the upcoming contract talk.
Philadelphia Flyers‘ 4th year right wing Nicolas Aube-Kubel(62) gets the nod to return to the show a couple of months into the new frame after another decent 5 goal, 3 assist start in 28 AHL games for affiliate Lehigh Valley Phantoms.
He skated 9 games last season but had no points with a +1 rating before being returned.
In his first game up this time he recorded an assist, then followed it with a 2nd helper and a first NHL goal a few outings later.
The 23-year old was signed to a one-year extension but looks to be carving out a spot in the lineup for himself and looking to earn a couple more years with the club.
New Jersey Devils‘ 13th year net minder Cory Schneider(35) was reassigned to affiliate Binghamton Devils after starting the new frame with a 0-4 record and piss poor 4.59 GAA and .852 SV%.
He won his first pair of AHL outings but lost 4 straight in drubbings, which dropped his game badly to a 3.53 GA and .882 SV%.
The 33-year old looks to be struggling some but still has another two years left on his 7-year extension, so may just play through it unless he gets bored and there’s a small rumor brewing he may opt to leave and head overseas.
Having earned an estimated tidy $43M from playing pro hockey, the 33-year old former Vancouver Canucks‘ 1st round pick in the 2004 draft (#26 overall) and winner of the 2011 Jenners Trophy for lowest league GA (and those weren’t even career best) has little to worry about.
