NHL draft pick | CollegeHockeyPlayers

11Apr

Michael Hutchinson (33)

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Goaltender Michael Hutchinson(33) has been on quite the ride through the hockey ranks this season since being left unqualified by the team that drafted him, Boston Bruins.

Originally a 3rd round pick in 2008 (#77 overall), he spent the first three years in their prospect system tending net mostly with Providence Bruins.

He was reassigned on a couple of occasions to ECHL affiliate Reading Royals through his first two campaigns.

None of it compares to the roller coaster ride he’s still on this season backstopping cages in three different leagues.

The almost unassumingly large 6’3″ 192 lbs. free agent net minder signed fairly quickly with Winnipeg Jets for a 1-year 2-way contract.

He was in training camp but quickly reassigned to AHL farm team St. John’s IceCaps and it didn’t stop there as he was sent along to Ontario Reign to start his fourth pro season.

This was where he stepped it up because in 28 starts he won 22, good enough for third in the league, lost a lowest 4 contests and posted a 2.08 GAA and .921 SV%.

He would receive an early Christmas gift on recall but it didn’t last as he was sent back down again. In early 2014 though, he was summoned once again and due to injuries ended up splitting starting duties.

Earning his time in net, he managed a 15-5 record, helping to solidify the IceCaps‘ postseason berth.

The stellar play of the 24-year old also earned him his first NHL games, making him a rare case of a player to skate games in three different leagues in a single frame.

In three appearances he won 2 and lost 1.

One of his wins was against his former team in a shootout and his 1.64 GAA and .943 SV% should almost assuredly score the future restricted free agent an extension.

First up though, he could be on his way to help bring the Calder Cup to the Rock.

09Apr

Andrey Pedan(3) Bridgeport Sound Tigers

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New York Islanders‘ 3rd round pick in the 2011 draft (#63 overall), extra large 6’4″ 215 lbs. Russian-born defenseman Andrey Pedan(3) missed a good portion of his rookie season with minor league affiliate Bridgeport Sound Tigers due to an upper body injury that put him on the sidelines for almost three months.

Appearing in only 25 AHL games, he still was able to connect for 5 goals and 5 assists while playing a punishing shutdown style in his own zone.

His -1 rating is also nicely accountable on a team with a league second worst goal differential.

He’s been in the parent club’s training camps ever since he was selected but returned to junior hockey as a teenager, where he skated a few seasons with Guelph Storm before signing his three-year entry level deal.

No doubt this is a player that has been widely scouted, as he was a first round grab in both the 2010 KHL and OHL drafts.

He obviously decided to try his skates on North American ice for a shot at the NHL.

The 20-year old may return to the farm club for a full year of development in 2014/2015, but could very well be on the short list for a recall, especially if he continues to display more of his offense-minded upside.

08Apr

Maxim Kitsyn(48) Ontario Reign

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Los Angeles Kings‘ 6th round pick in the 2010 draft (#158 overall) Russian-born left wing Maxim Kitsyn(48) had a bit of a struggling first half of his rookie season, finding himself in an out of the lineup with AHL affiliate Manchester Monarchs.

His 3 goals and 1 assist in 20 contests wasn’t enough to crack a tough roster of skaters that have mostly been together in the prospect system for awhile.

The sturdy 6’2″ 192 lbs. forward already has five seasons, 110 games of KHL experience to his credit. He put together 10 goals and 9 assists, playing in the league since he was 16-years old.

He also spent the latter half of 2010/2011 playing in the OHL with Mississauga St. Michael’s Majors and parts of seasons in the Russian tier two league and juniors in his home country.

He was almost routinely a point-per-game guy in these levels of hockey.

Reassigned to double A affiliate Ontario Reign, he has managed to produce at a similar clip.

In 31 ECHL games he’s potted a handy 13 goals and 15 assists with an amazing +15 rating and has unloaded 100 shots on the net.

The 22-year old signed a three-year entry level contract and is definitely the exact kind of big frame offensive-minded player they call up to the NHL and sticks.

He can easily bring his game up to another level but will have to want it bad to get the look.

07Apr

Caleb Herbert (40)

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Washington Capitals‘ 5th round pick in the 2010 draft (#142 overall) right wing Caleb Herbert(40) signed a two-year entry level deal, leaving University Of Minnesota-Duluth after leading the team in scoring and penalty minutes in his third season at the school.

His contract kicks in starting in 2014/2015 but no time has been wasted to get his legs wet as they send him to minor league affiliate Hershey Bears on an ato.

In his first game he connected for his first pro goal and assist.

For his encore he got the opening tally but in his third contest he received two minutes for holding and no points. There’s goes that average.

In three AHL games the totals rest (for the moment) at 2 goals, 1 assist for 3 points and a +3 rating.

All games were also important wins for the team.

The 6′ 194 lbs. 22-year old forward has been in the parent club’s training camps since his selection and will no doubt be fighting for a slot on the NHL roster in a fifth camp to officially start his rookie season.

05Apr

Brodie Dupont(91) Iserlohn Roosters

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7th year center/left wing Brodie Dupont(91) circled back to rejoin the AHL team he spent the first four years of his pro career with.

He signed a pto with minor league affiliate Hartford Wolf Pack at the beginning of the season to return to North American hockey after winning the 2013 Italian Cup Championship with Valpellice Bulldogs.

That followed a less than fruitful stint traded to Nashville Predators organization and reassigned to Milwaukee Admirals.

The fairly large-looking 6’2″ 210 lbs. power forward was averaging 40 points per season in his first three years.

Appearing in only 26 games on a veteran heavy roster, he managed a goal and 5 assists with a -9 rating, when he decided to accept an offer from Iserlohn Roosters of DEL to head back across the pond to skate the remainder of 2014.

The move seemed to work as he got some of his mojo back, putting up 2 goals and 6 assists in 13 contests and another pair of tallies and helpers in the playoffs.

Impressed enough with his performance, the 27-year old re-signed to return for a full season.

03Apr

Cade Fairchild(2) Portland Pirates

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3rd year defenseman Cade Fairchild(2) was picked up in an AHL trade deadline deal by Phoenix Coyotes for future considerations and reassigned to their farm club, Portland Pirates.

Originally a St. Louis Blues‘ 4th round pick in the 2007 draft, he skated mostly with their minor league affiliates apart from 5 NHL games in his rookie season (one assist).

In a somewhat surprisingly move he was also sent down to the ECHL for a pair of contests for Kalamazoo Wings near the beginning of the current season.

The slightly small-ish looking 5’11” 178 lbs. blue liner has appeared in 150 AHL contests scoring 10 goals and 55 assists with a massive +30 rating.

He dished out his fair share of helpers in four years at University Of Minnesota.

Tbe 25-year old is set to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the current campaign after signing a one-year extension.

It will be interesting to see where he ends up playing in 2014/2015, but I doubt anyone will be surprised if he decides to take his talents overseas.

02Apr

Mirco Mueller(41) Worcester Sharks

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San Jose Sharks‘ 1st round pick in the 2013 draft (#18 overall), towering 6’4″ 195 lbs. Swiss0-born defenseman Mirco Mueller(41) skated in his first North American pro game on reassignment with minor league affiliate Worcester Sharks.

In his AHL debut he got his first point, the primary assist, when he launched a shot from the point that was tipped in by a teammate for the game-winning goal.

He signed a 3-year entry level contract before the start of the 2013/2014 season but returned for a second run in the WHL with Everett Silvertips. In his two years with the team he posted almost identical numbers including a pair of 20+ assist campaigns.

As a 17-year old he also skated in 7 games in the NLA with Kloten scoring a goal before he headed across the pond.

Now just 19, he will get his chance to crack the NHL lineup as a teenager.

25Mar

Dana Tyrell(14) Springfield Falcons

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5th year left wing Dana Tyrell(14) was recently involved in a mostly minor league player transaction that sent his playing rights to Columbus Blue Jackets‘ organization, where he was reassigned to their minor league affiliate Springfield Falcons.

Originally a Tampa Bay Lightning 2nd round pick in the 2007 draft (#47 overall), he signed a one-way, 2-year extension near the beginning of the final season of his entry level deal.

The not exactly big, generously listed at 5’11” 192 lbs. forward played the remainder of the campaign in the NHL but was in and out of the lineup, skating in only 26 games posting 5 assists.

He did slightly better in the first year of his new contract but seemed to slip on the club’s depth chart in the lockout shortened 2012/2013 and only played 7 big league contests this season.

At almost 25-years old, he is set to become a restricted free agent as the hockey calendar winds down, but he’s also putting up some of his best AHL totals with a career high 13 goals.

In 8 games for the Falcons he’s off to a hot start connecting 4 times with the back of the net and adding a pair of helpers on a Calder Cup Playoff bound squad.

He should be invited to return for another season on a 2-way contract.

See related: 11/26-11

22Mar

Ryan Bourque(9) Hartford Wolf Pack

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New York Rangers‘ 3rd round pick in the 2009 draft (#80 overall) left wing Ryan Bourque(9) has taken his AHL scoring onto a whole new level.

In his third year with minor league affiliate Hartford Wolf Pack he’s more than doubled his goals scored and is equal in points from his first two campaigns with the team. He’s also closely behind his 2-year assist total.

All good to see from an under-sized 5’9″ 178 lbs. forward who is in the final season of his entry level contract.

He started with a couple seasons of US junior hockey before moving on for another pair of years in the QMJHL with Quebec Remparts, where he proved in both developmental leagues that he could put up numbers.

The 23-year may be small but he’s a speedy skater and plays a tenacious, in-your-face style.

He’s set to become a restricted free agent at the end of the current campaign and is likely to be given a qualifying offer to stay in the Blueshirts‘ prospect system.

See related: 12/1-11

18Mar

Tanner Richard(71) Syracuse Crunch

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Tampa Bay Lightning‘ 3rd round pick in the 2012 draft (#71 overall) Canadian/Swiss center Tanner Richard(71) is off to a decent start in his rookie season with a team that knows they’re under-performing in 2013/2014.

In 57 AHL games with minor league affiliate Syracuse Crunch he only has a couple of markers but a decent 15 assists and plays a gritty tough to play against style, which on the downside often ends him up doing time in the penalty box.

When the 6′ 187 lbs. finds his spots on the ice he is going to add potentially dangerous offensive threat to his game like he did in two years of juniors in the OHL with Guelph Storm. He was a better than point-per-game player before he signed a contract to turn pro a season after he was selected.

He also had four years of elite hockey experience as a youngster in Switzerland, where he grew up as his father Mike Richard was playing hockey for Rapperswil of the NLA.

As a 17-year old he got to play 4 games with his dad’s former team and played world juniors competition for the country.

Currently almost a 21-year old, he is signed to a 3-year entry level deal through 2016.