Tagged: NHL draft pick

17Jan

Tomas Kundratek(34) Washington Capitals

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Originally a New York Rangers‘ 3rd round pick in 2008 (#90 overall), 2nd year defenseman Tomas Kundratek(34) was traded to Washington Capitals in the 2nd year of his 3-year two-way entry level deal. Word has it he asked for out of town.

Whatever he did it worked, because he was recently recalled to play in his first NHL games and so far he’s appeared in three, all wins for the team. He’s averaged roughly 10 hours of ice time per game. The Caps are fairly stocked on defense but as guy’s continue to get healthy, he’s making the most of his chance to play.

In 21 games with Hershey Bears, he has 6 an AHL career high 6 goals and a pair of assists.

12Jan

Lance Bouma(10) Calgary Flames

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Calgary Flames‘ 3rd round pick in the 2008 draft (#78 overall) center Lance Bouma(10) earned his first call-up from the AHL‘s Abbotsford Heat. He played 16 NHL games last season and notched one assist.

In his first game up he scored his first NHL goal, the first of the game vs. Minnesota Wild in the team’s 3-1 win.

He’s in the second year of his entry level contract so it’s easy to bring him back up and down.

In 31 AHL games this season he has 3 goals and 3 assists but is kind of a miserable -9 plus/minus.

 

09Jan

Ryan Russell(20) Columbus Blue Jackets

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5th year New York Rangers 2005 7th round pick (#211 overall) center Ryan Russell(20) played his 1st NHL regular season games over the weekend on call-up from Springfield Falcons by his new team Columbus Blue Jackets.

When he couldn’t come to terms with the Rangers on a contract he signed to a two-year entry deal and then another one year, two-way deal with Montreal Canadiens but spent time only with their AHL affiliate Hamilton Bulldogs before he was traded in the offseason to start 2011/2012.

In 2 games with the Blue Jackets (a win and a loss), he’s skated an average of 12 minutes of ice time including a good amount on the pk. He’s played 30 games in the AHL and has 9 goals and 6 assists while maintaining an even plus/minus.

His twin brother Kris Russell plays defense for St. Louis Blues. He was a Blue Jackets‘ player up until mid-November, when he was traded. They did play in the preseason together though.

 

08Jan

Philip Samuelsson (5)

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philip-samuelsson

Pittsburgh Penguins‘ 2nd round pick in the 2009 draft (#61 overall) defenseman Philip Samuelsson(5) played only a couple years of college hockey before turning pro.

Signed to a 3-year two-way entry level deal, he started the season in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton with their AHL affiliate.

In 33 games with the Baby Pens he has 1 goal and 7 assists, while going a +6 plus/minus.

His dad is former Stanley Cup Champion defenseman, Ulf Sammuelsson.

At 20 years old he’s already fairly big like his father at 6’3″ 198 lbs.

He’s also considered a stay at home defenseman, much like his dad’s rep was during his playing career.

07Jan

Steve Zalewski(15) New Jersey Devils

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steven-zalewski5

Originally a San Jose Sharks‘ 5th round pick in the 2004 draft (#153 overall) center Steve Zalewski(15) was dished to New Jersey Devils in the last year of his entry level contract in a four player trade. His numbers had dipped that season to the point where he fell from the depth chart.

He played 3 NHL games in the 2009/2010 season but failed to register a point.

As soon as he got to the Devils‘ AHL affiliate in Albany he regained his scoring touch and that continued into 2011/2012.

For his efforts he received his 1st recall and was dropped off by the team bus at a New Jersey truck stop to join the Devils for their game against Boston at the Prudential Center but only took warm-ups and was a healthy scratch.

He made his debut a couple of nights later, a 5-2 win for the team. No telling how long he’ll stay up in the NHL but if they keep winning, look for him to become a more permanent part of their lineup.

04Jan

Jeff Zatkoff(36) Manchester Monarchs

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One thing Los Angeles Kings have in their prospect system is great young netminders galore. Originally a 3rd round pick in 2006, Jeff Zatkoff(36) has earned the AHL Goalie Of The Month for December.

He was 5-2 with a 1.76 GAA and .946 SV% for Manchester Monarchs. In 17 appearances this season he has a 10-4 record.

This is the last season of his entry level deal, so given the fact that the Kings have a glut of goalies, it will be interesting to see what becomes of the 24-year old pro. He has yet to appear in an NHL game.

 

 

04Jan

Luca Caputi(17) Syracuse Crunch

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In one of the most uncomfortable trade scenarios we’ve come across in a little while, 4th year pro Luca Caputi(17) was traded to the team that happened to be visiting his (former) home area that night, Syracuse Crunch.

Toronto Maple Leafs made a minor league trade with Anaheim Ducks that perpetuated this cruel joke.

What makes it worse is the player he was traded for Nicolas Dechamps(16) scored a goal in his debut for Toronto Marlies 2-0 victory over his new team.

A humorous aside from the trade, the two players also traded numbers assuming each other’s numbers for their new teams.

In 23 AHL games this season Caputi has 2 goals and 1 assist.

He has 35 games of NHL experience with the Maple Leafs and the team he was originally drafted by in the 4th round of 2007 (#111 overall) Pittsburgh Penguins. He has 3 goals and 6 assists to his credit.

Anaheim Ducks are slumping so badly that it’s almost certain he will see his 1st NHL call-up of the 2011/2012 season.

 

02Jan

Nick Palmieri(34) Albany Devils

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We’re thinking it’s mostly a numbers game that has New Jersey Devils‘ 2007 3rd round pick (#79 overall) Nick Palmieri(34) being reassigned to Albany on a couple of occasions. Starting the season with New Jersey, he has skated in 23 games posting 4 goals and 3 assists, but was a -7 plus/minus. No doubt he has to play better to stick with the team.

He’s in the final year of his entry level contract and can be called-up and reassigned without any fear of losing him through waivers.

He played 43 NHL games with them last year as a rookie and pocketed himself a nice 9 goals and 8 assists, while being a +9 player for what was a fairly terrible team. His totals were good enough for first on the team in rookie goal scoring.

In 14 AHL games this season he has just a couple of goals and one assist and is a -5. He seems like the type of player that has it in fourth gear most of the time when playing in the minors.

01Jan

Jon DiSalvatore(14) Houston Aeros

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Houston Aeros‘ captain and 9 year veteran left winger, Jon DiSalvatore(14) earned his first NHL call-up since the 2005-2006 season when he was with St. Louis Blues.

This was only his sixth ever game in the big league. He skated a total of 14:27 including time on the power play and had 2 shots on net and 2 penalty minutes. He was reassigned back to the Aeros the next day.

In 635 AHL games he has 188 goals and 269 assists. He has scored 20 or more goals in all of his previous 8 pro seasons and looks to be on his way to a 9th consecutive 20 goal campaign as he already has 10 in 33 games.

He was originally a 4th round pick in the 2000 draft by San Jose Sharks (#104 overall).