This season was make-or-break for Ryan Hartman, and that’s not overstating it.
He’s only 22, but Hartman didn’t exactly take the fast track after being selected by the Chicago Blackhawks with the final pick in the first round of the 2012 NHL Draft. He spent two seasons with the Plymouth Whalers of the Ontario Hockey League, playing junior hockey, and then two-plus seasons with the Rockford IceHogs of the American Hockey League.
While in Rockford, Hartman didn’t produce a huge amount of offense and racked up enough penalty minutes (249) to make you wonder if he’d ever pan out.