A year on - what happened to the Penguins camp invites of 2014?
Camp is one of the first things to happen after the draft and last year was no exception for the Penguins as they invited 7 players to attend their development camp. Three defencemen, two goaltenders and two forwards. The camp was attended from July 15th to July 19th. The players that attended ended up having different results during the season.
The two goaltenders invited were Jake Hildebrand, from Michigan State University and Steve Mastalerz from UMass-Amherst. Both were starters for their respective teams at that time. Hildebrand has lost 1lb over the course of the season dropping from a 184 to a 183 whilst Mastalerz has bulked up, going from a 200 to 205lbs. Performance wise Hildebrand has fared much better posting a 2.18 GAA and .930SV% through 35 games. Mastalerz has struggled posting a 3.69 GAA and .894SV% through just 19 games. Hildebrand is a year younger and if the Penguins are looking for a goaltender then I think they'll invite him again.
Of the three defenceman invited two of them are now in the Penguins system. Clark Seymour and Alex Boak were both offered deals whilst Daniel Renouf was not. Seymour was originally drafted by the Penguins in the 5th round, 143 overall in 2012 but was offered a deal with the AHL's Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins. He spent most of his time in the ECHL last season with the Wheeling Nailers scoring 1 goal and 14 assists in 54 games. He did appear in the AHL but only for twelve games and his sole contribution was a solitary assist. Seymour is a strong player having bulked from 202lbs to 220.
The other players to be accepted into the Penguins system was Alex Boak who was also offered a deal with the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins. Unlike Seymour he spent most of his time in the AHL playing 31 times scoring 1 goal and 5 assists. He didn't escape from Wheeling, spending 14 games there, no doubt during the injury problems that affected each team. Unlike Seymour he has lost weight going from 216lbs to 210lbs.
Both Seymour and Boak have played within their means and I think it would be fair to say that Boak has been more effective. Daniel Renouf was the only defenceman not offered a deal out of the three. He returned to the University of Maine and have a similar season to last year. He produced slightly more with 3 goals and 9 assists but it came in 39 games opposed to the 34 last year. It would be interesting to see if Renouf has been kept an eye on by the Penguins and if they invite him again.
Lastly, the forwards. Nick Lappin and Brad McClure both return to the NCAA with their respective teams, Brown University for Lappin and Minnesota State - Mankato for McClure. McClure had a more productive season coming off an 80 point season with the Penticton Vees in the BCHL. He finished with 15 goals and 14 assists in 39 games compared to Lappin's 14 goals and 7 assists in 29 games. Both players haven't let the rejection affect their performances and have continued their development.
The Penguins training and development camp roster is normally announced at the end of June after the Draft. I'll be keeping an eye out to see if there are any returnees' from 2014.
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