Washington Capitals‘ 8th year right wing Devante Smith-Pelly(25) was maybe somewhat oddly reassigned to affiliate Hershey Bears after sluggish performance saw him only produce 4 goals and 4 assists in 54 NHL games.
The demotion didn’t seem to deter him much as he got busy right away with a pair of multi-point outings, including a hat trick just over a week after arriving and wound up scoring 6 goals and 8 assists with a +2 rating in 20 AHL games.
His first since the 2013/2014 season under contract with Anaheim Ducks but mostly skating for Norfolk Admirals.
He was recently recalled due to a significant injury to the parent club and welcomed back wholeheartedly after what he was able to produce for the team in last year’s Stanley Cup Championship run.
En route to that victory, he scored 7 goals and 1 assist in 24 playoff matchups.
In his 2019 playoff debut he skated 17 shifts for 10:43 total ice with 1 shot, 5 hits and left the 6-0 win a +1 rating.
The 26-year old is set to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the current calendar and seems like the type of player that is good to keep around, so maybe he’ll get an extension without having to first go unqualified.
Devante Smith-Pelly (21)
Montreal Canadiens pick up a power forward personality player in 4th year left wing Devante Smith-Pelly(21) for their playoff push in an even swap with Anaheim Ducks, his draft team (2010 round 2, #42 overall), the only team he’s skated for.
The 6’0 220 lbs. wide body set new career highs for games played (54), assists (12) and points (19) in the current campaign.
He still has one-year on his current deal, so he’s likely in for the haul with this trade.
At only 22-years old he has the ability to make a third line into a fluke scoring machine and he may get more freedom to do explore in the new system.
Devante Smith-Pelly (34)
Anaheim Ducks‘ 2010 2nd round draft pick (#42 overall), right wing Devante Smith-Pelly(34) was reassigned to minor league affiliate Syracuse Crunch for a brief conditioning stint after missing a month of game action due to a fractured foot he suffered while on loan to Team Canada for the IIHF World Junior Championship.
In 4 AHL games, the 6′ 211 lbs. 19-year old rookie only produced one assist.
In 26 NHL games he has 3 goals and a pair of assists but is a miserable -10 plus/minus.
He still looks a bit lost out there skating with the men but plays with enough fire that it shouldn’t take him long to get deep into the mix on a streaking team in the playoff hunt.