Daniel Sprong Was Enticed To Choose Vancouver By One Member Of The Team

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Matt Garland
July 23, 2024 (10:57)

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New signed Daniel Sprong had other plans for how this off-season was going to go but in the end had to settle on a one-year $975k contract with the Vancouver Canucks. Even though it took awhile to find a team, there were many suitors chasing Sprong's signature. It was a colleague from his past that swayed Sprong into choosing Vancouver.

Sprong spoke to reporters for the first time since signing with Vancouver. He revealed a phone call he got from Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet swayed him into choosing his next team. Tocchet was an assistant coach during Sprong's rookie year with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2015-16.

«I talked to Vancouver and spoke to coach Toc and we had a really good conversation on the phone. We've known each other when I got drafted by Pittsburgh and I played under him when he was an assistant coach. We had a really good talk, and I felt really happy after that call, and the decision was a no-brainer after that."

The 27 year old, put up 18 goals and 43 points with the Detroit Red Wings last season. Impressive totals considering he only averaged 12:00 in ice time. Sprong never seems able to earn the trust of his coaches despite putting up solid scoring numbers. His career high was during the 2022-23 season, when he put up 21 goals and 46 points with the Seattle Kraken. He only received an average of 11:25 in ice time.

With Sprong already having a prior bond with Tocchet maybe things will finally be different for the Amsterdam native when it comes to his ice time

Sprong has some established relationships already with some of his new teammates. He is good friends with Elias Pettersson after meeting on a vacation and kept in touch with Jake DeBrusk, who was a part of the same draft class. The trio could potentially form a dangerous line next season for Vancouver.