With Yegor Sharangovich scoring at a serious clip in Russia, can he make the Devils?
The New Jersey Devils have seen some incredible transformations in an offseason before. Just a couple of years ago, Jesper Bratt went from a 6th-round pick that surprisingly signed to a star rookie who made the team out of the preseason. This season, another late-round draft pick is making a similar ascent up the prospect pool.
Yegor Sharangovich was playing well towards the end of last season. From Valentine’s Day to the end of the season, he had 12 points in 13 games. In the last game before the cancelation of the AHL season, Sharangovich had two goals and an assist against the Rochester Americans. He ended the season with 10 goals and 15 assists.
25 points in an AHL season isn’t great, but all of the Binghamton Devils were pretty terrible to start the season. They all got back on their game in the last two months of the season, and they were well on their way to making the playoffs.
Sharangovich took it to another level when he was sent to Dinamo Minsk on loan. He scored 15 goals in his first 29 games playing in the KHL. It’s the type of jump in production that’s going to get the attention of the team back home. Just today, the Devils tweeted about Sharangovich’s scoring ability. It’s clear he’s turning heads in the organization.
However, will those heads actually look at him as an NHL regular? The Devils do have three spots among the forwards that aren’t a guarantee. One is likely going to Jesper Boqvist. Another could go to Janne Kuokkanen, but that’s not clear at this point.
Sharangovich has an opportunity, and the Devils might give him a look, but it’s hard to see him breaking the lineup on game one. Especially with a perceived shortened training camp and preseason, he has an uphill climb. It’s much more likely he will start the season as the first line on what should be an improved Binghamton team.