Men's Ice Hockey POTY Smigelski Earns Invite to Penguins' Rookie Camp
Courtesy Williams Sports Information
PITTSBURH, Pa. – Undrafted, unheralded and unknown no longer.
Many ice hockey observers in the Pittsburgh area were not familiar with Eph grad Alex Smigelski when he showed up at the Pittsburgh Penguins Development Camp. They are now.
Smigelski showed that he was undeterred at being an unknown when offered a chance to step up to the next level of play at the recently concluded Pittsburgh Penguins Development Camp.
Alex Smigelski was not a total unknown when he graduated from Williams having earned All-NESCAC and NESCAC Player of the Year and Division III All-America honors. Undersized in high school Smigelski has grown in stature as a player and a physical specimen over his four years at Williams. The Washington Capitals knew of Smigelski and invited him to attend their Development Camp, but that invite came after he had accepted the spot in Pittsburgh.
Smigelski successfully seized the opportunity to perform and by all accounts he made a most favorable impression on the Penguins brass. In the scrimmages at the Development Camp Smigelski was placed on the first line for the Black Team with the Penguins top draftees Eric Tangradi and Keven Veilleux.
"Alex played very well and has earned an invite to the Penguins Rookie Camp in September," says Eph head coach Bill Kangas. "We're all really proud of Alex, from the players, coaches and the alums. We're all rooting for him."
"I knew Alex would be ready physically for Development Camp because he works so hard." notes Kangas. "He made his body into a professional player's body over his four years here," continues Kangas. "I saw that a lot of places listed him at 6-2, 195, but I know he is closer to 220 and believe me, he has put in the time to get his body in shape to compete."
The Rookie Camp will feature an opportunity for Smigelski and his Penguins teammates to engage in three games versus three other NHL Rookie Camp teams in London, Ontario. From those three games the Penguins staff will evaluate the candidates for their NHL team and their AHL team. Not all of the Pittsburgh Penguins Rookie Camp players will be assigned to a team in the Penguins system.
"This is the next step in Alex's quest to make his dream come true of competing in the NHL,' says Kangas. "He will compete, that I'm sure of. All of us at Williams know that Alex will prepare even harder now, and is one of the hardest working athletes I have ever been around. He made it past the first round and now he is focused on the second chance."
