When he woke up Tuesday, the morning after he had been traded from the Penguins to the Ducks, forward Daniel Sprong immediately knew he wasn’t in wintry Pittsburgh anymore. “I saw the sun for the first time in a month. I guess that’s a good sign, get to see the sun still exists,” he said.
Deep and mobile on defense with the development of rookies Josh Mahura and Jacob Larsson, the Ducks felt comfortable trading defenseman Marcus Pettersson to the Penguins for the speed and scoring potential of 21-year-old Sprong. He has produced in juniors — he had three 30-goal seasons — and in the American Hockey League, where he scored 32 goals and 65 points in 65 games for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (Pa.