Daniel Sprong of Penguins ready for second chance at NHL

CRANBERRY, Pa. -- The road for Pittsburgh Penguins prospect Daniel Sprong has been paved. He just has to take it.
Sprong, 20-year-old right wing from Amsterdam, Netherlands, is projected to follow the same path forwards Jake Guentzel, Conor Sheary and Bryan Rust have taken to the NHL. Sheary and Rust have won the Stanley Cup twice since being recalled during the 2015-16 season, and Guentzel won it as a rookie in 2017.

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After scoring 59 points (32 goals, 27 assists) with Charlottetown of the Quebec Junior Major Hockey League last season, Sprong could follow their example. But he'd rather do it his own way.
"All those guys have had really good starts. I'm happy for them," Sprong said. "They're all great guys, but for me, it's just coming into camp and playing my way. Just get the chances and make sure to take full advantage of it."
Penguins general manager Jim Rutherford said he expects Sprong and fellow forward prospect Zach Aston-Reese to play at least half of the season with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in the American Hockey League.
"Aston-Reese and Sprong are both tracking very well," Rutherford said. "I think they're going to have a real impressive [training] camp, which will put themselves in the conversation of where they should start the season."
Sprong (6-feet, 180 pounds), has some previous NHL experience. After the Penguins took him in the second round (No. 46) in the 2015 NHL Draft, he started the 2015-16 season with Pittsburgh and scored two goals in 18 games before being returned to Charlottetown.

That short taste of the NHL helped Sprong realize a few of the holes in his game, mostly on the defensive end. During the past two years, he's worked to become more reliable in his own end.
"I remember when I was in the NHL, watching a lot of games here at home and just seeing what guys are doing in the D-zone and how I could put that in my game," Sprong said. "I know what I have to do on that side of the puck. My skill level will take over on the other side."
Being sent down then made him hungry for more.
"It was a dream come true to make the team at 18 years old," Sprong said. "Playing 18 games and scoring twice, it's something you'll never forget. I had a taste of it and I got sent down."
That attitude fit in well with Sprong's new role as a leader during Pittsburgh's prospect development camp in late June. Despite younger than many of the other prospects, Sprong said he accepted and welcomed that challenge.
Director of player development Mark Recchi was glad to see Sprong step in as a veteran.
"This is great for him," Recchi said. "He can help them, he can help the guys. That's what we look for. I did tell Daniel that, that you're a leader here now and we expect you to look after these guys. So it's good."
Sprong underwent successful shoulder surgery in June 2016 that kept him out of development camp last year. He's fully recovered and appreciates how it taught him to handle adversity.
"It was a frustrating time," Sprong said. "You want to play and you want to see if you can make the NHL, but that's something I had to go through. I think I learned a lot and matured a lot during that time."