After being drafted third overall by the Tampa Bay Lightning, Jonathan Drouin did not hit the ice skating in the NHL.
Quite a bit has changed for Colorado Avalanche forward Jonathan Drouin in the last decade.
In The Hockey News' Jan. 1, 2014 issue, Drouin was in the spotlight after rejoining his junior team in the Quebec league. The teen forward was cut by his draft team in training camp — the Tampa Bay Lightning — because it had a plethora of upcoming talent that was more experienced and older than him.
“That’s what we thought was best for his development,” Stacy Roest, Tampa Bay’s director of player development in 2014 told THN. “We had a good young group already coming up.”
The Ste-Agathe, Quebec native won a Memorial Cup with the Halifax Mooseheads along with linemate Nathan MacKinnon in 2013. But while MacKinnon was thriving in the NHL after going first overall in that year's draft with the Avalanche, Drouin was continuing his development in the QMJHL despite being picked third.
“Of course it was disappointing, but after it happened, I knew I wasn’t going to be called back up. I have a lot of years ahead of me. I’m not panicking,” Drouin said.
The 18-year-old's return to the Mooseheads changed some things in his play — he moved to center which diversified his game and he took on more of a leadership role.
More on Drouin's path to the NHL and other favored prospects from 10 years ago can be found in the issue.
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