The two Edmonton Oilers forwards have some commonalities on how they made it to the NHL.
The Edmonton Oilers have been searching for depth to help out the team whenever Connor McDavid or Leon Draisaitl aren't on the ice. Part of the answer to that has come in the form of Derek Ryan.
Ryan is in his third season with the Oilers. He's never been an offensive dynamo but his two 20+ point seasons have been solid additions to the bottom six of the lineup.
James Hamblin is a recent call up for the Oilers. He just scored his first NHL goal in a loss against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Hamblin and Ryan have a few similarities in their journey to the NHL.
Western Hockey League Journeymen
Ryan played for the Spokane Chiefs for four seasons. Hamblin played for the Medicine Hat Tigers for five years.
For Ryan, he was born in Spokane, Washington - so the Chiefs were a local team he could grind his way to get on to.
Hamblin was born in Edmonton. Medicine Hat isn't right around the corner, but there is a convenience factor with playing Junior hockey in your home province.
Next Stop, Europe
Both Hamblin and Ryan were not drafted by NHL teams. So instead of graduating out of the WHL, they went on to play in Europe.
For Ryan, it started in the Austrian League and then the SHL three years later. Hamblin signed a two-year AHL contract and was then loaned to Division 1 in Sweden when the Covid-19 pandemic hit North America.
The road to the NHL for Hamblin and Ryan hasn't been easy. But for right now, they are making the most of it.
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