Joey Hishon, Center
As badly as you might feel for Duncan Siemens, you feel even worse for Joey Hishon. Granted Hishon didn’t have to contend with an unfortunate draft partner — and he could have held his own anyway:
Joking aside, Hishon was drafted a year before Siemens (and Landeskog). He went 17th-overall in 2010, the year after Matt Duchene (and Ryan O’Reilly).
Joey Hishon has been given a lot more of a chance to prove himself than Siemens — 13 regular season games and three playoff games. He even scored his first NHL goal and got doused by the captain:
Unfortunately, injury has really set Hishon back. He suffered a terrible concussion injury in 2011. He missed an entire year with post-concussion syndrome. He suffered a second concussion in 2013.
Joey Hishon has such offensive upside with his speed and stick handling. He’s worked on his defensive game as well, but it’s never going to be a strong point for him. Hishon is small — just 5-foot-10, 170 pounds — and apparently fragile. He’s unlikely to make it with Colorado’s big, aggressive style — especially in the brutal Central Division.
Next: Avs Distributing Offensive Talent
Hishon only has a year left before he becomes a restricted free agent. Colorado already waived him early in the season, and he cleared waivers. However, an Eastern team looking for speed and skill might be willing to cough up a draft pick for him, especially a later one. As Colorado is unlikely to re-sign Hishon, they’d probably take it.