Some more training camp rosters came out today, with several other professional tryouts included in Chicago and Ottawa. The Blackhawks will welcome Mark Stuart, Drew Miller and John Mitchell to camp, while according to Ken Warren of the Ottawa Citizen, the Senators have invited Chris VandeVelde to compete for a spot.
Stuart has spent the last six seasons with the Winnipeg Jets, but with the emergence of Josh Morrissey last season and the signing of Dmitri Kulikov, there was never going to be a match between the two for this season. Instead, he’ll try and prove, along with Cody Franson who is also in camp on a PTO, that he can still compete at the NHL level and add something to the Blackhawks’ defense group. The 33-year old has played 673 games in the NHL.
Miller, also 33, is coming off eight seasons with the Detroit Red Wings organization, where he admirably filled a fourth-line or thirteenth forward role. Never much of an offensive threat, Miller has nonetheless carved out a successful career for himself, playing 571 games and winning the Stanley Cup with Anaheim before ever suiting up for a regular season game.
The last of the three new tryouts, Mitchell saw his play fall off a cliff last season with the Colorado Avalanche, scoring just seven points all season. The 32-year old had previously been a fairly reliable bottom-six center, who registered a career-high of 32 points in 2013-14. As part of the Colorado collapse last year, Mitchell saw fewer and fewer minutes and couldn’t get anything going offensively. It may be close to the end for the former Maple Leafs draft pick.
For the Senators, they’ll bring in VandeVelde after he suited up in 81 of the Philadelphia Flyers’ games last season. The 30-year old tied his career-high with 15 points last season, but was a regular on the penalty kill nearly all season. He’ll try to earn a contract with the same work ethic that took him from a middling minor leaguer to a lineup stalwart in Philly.