James van Riemsdyk, a second overall pick of the Philadelphia Flyers in 2007, had a relatively slow start to his NHL career. Mixed in were two concussions that were big setbacks for him in the regular season, but there were also flashes of strong play, particularly his big playoff performance in 2011 (seven goals in 11 games).
After getting traded to Toronto in a straight-up swap for Luke Schenn prior to the 2012-13 lockout, van Riemsdyk was soon placed on the Leafs’ top line with Phil Kessel and Tyler Bozak, where he put up numbers good enough to be named to Team USA for the Sochi Olympics the following season.