Blackhawks trade Alex Nylander at Penguins for Sam Lafferty

The third time, is it a charm?

As for Alex Nylander, he hopes so.

Nylander was traded by the Chicago Blackhawks to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday afternoon for forward Sam Lafferty.

For 23-year-old Nylander, this will be the third NHL organization he tries to deliver on his promise that saw him drafted 8th overall by the Buffalo Sabers in 2016. To date, Nylander has only 32. (13G, 19A) in 84 career league games, never having scored more than 10 goals or 30 points in a single season.

Nylander has failed to get the Blackhawks out of training camp this season, having spent the entire 2021-22 campaign so far with the AHL’s Rockford IceHogs.

Nylander has 12 points in 23 games for Rockford.

Lafferty, meanwhile, is a whole different story. He was never considered a major prospect, originally joining the Penguins via the 113^e overall pick in the fourth round of the 2014 NHL Draft. But Lafferty has gradually carved out a niche in the NHL as a solid depth player, in large part because of his dynamism and non-stop engine that has graced coaches at all times. levels he played.

However, Lafferty hasn’t scored a goal for three seasons and doesn’t have Nylander’s cap. But after three years without Nylander training in Chicago, the Blackhawks decided to cut their losses and move on.

Nylander will be a restricted free agent after the season.

Lafferty is currently capped at $ 750,000 and will be an unrestricted free agent this summer.