Tampa Bay Lightning: 30 Best Draft Picks In Franchise History
Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports
12. Alex Killorn
Draft Year: 2007
Position: Center
One of the biggest steals the Tampa Bay Lightning ever acquired at the NHL Draft is Tampa Bay Lightning center Alex Killorn. Drafted by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the Third Round (77th Overall) in the 2007 National Hockey League Entry Draft, Alex Killorn has turned out to be one of the most integral parts of the Lightning offense.
Killorn would spend his first season as a part of the Lightning organization with the Deerfield Academy High Varsity Ice Hockey team. The player who would come to be known by Tampa Bay Lightning fans as “Killer” would follow this up with four years playing for the Harvard Crimson.
This is where things really kick into high gear for Alex Killorn. Following his time at Harvard, Killorn made his way to the then-Tampa Bay Lightning American Hockey League affiliate, the Norfolk Admirals. As many proud Tampa Bay Lightning fans already know, the 2011-12 season is when the Norfolk Admirals captured the Calder Cup, the AHL equivalent of the Stanley Cup.
Alex Killorn was a huge part of the Admirals’ success in the post season. In the 17 games he played in the post season with the Admirals, Killorn scored three goals and nine assists for a total of 12 points. One of these goals would come while on the Power Play and another would actually be the Game Winning Goal.
Killorn would make his NHL debut on February 10, 2013 against the New York Rangers. While the Lightning would essentially get stomped by the Rangers, Killorn would register his first NHL point with an assist on the lone Lightning goal from former Lightning captain Vincent Lecavalier. Killer would go on to score seven goals and 12 assists for a total of 19 points in his debut season.
In the 2013-14 season, Killorn would register a career high for goals, assists and points. In the regular season, Killorn would score 17 goals and 24 assists for a total of 41 points. This season really allowed him to show what a real playmaker he could be for the Tampa Bay Lightning.
The next season, Killorn would keep the same pace in the regular season he did in the previous season, bringing home 15 goals and 23 assists for a total of 28 points. The difference between last season and the season before is his stellar performance in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Killorn played in 26 games with the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs. In that amount of time, Killer would score nine goals and nine assists for a total of 18 points in the post season. These numbers would put Killorn in third place on the team in regards to points, only surpassed by his teammates Nikita Kucherov and Tyler Johnson.
Alex Killorn has a killer shot (pun slightly intended), tremendous situational awareness, and amazing speed on the ice. It is hard to believe that a player like Killorn would still be available when the Third Round of the draft comes around. As each day passes and the Tampa Bay Lightning continues to grow as a team, Killorn continues to prove why he is a valuable asset to the Lightning and one of the best Lightning draft picks in franchise history.
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