The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins' season ended on Thursday night when the Charlotte Checkers completed the sweep in the best-of-5 first round.
In the coming days, a number of players will join the club in Pittsburgh as part of the Black Aces squad to practice with the team and be available in case any injuries occur. One of those players surely will be Daniel Sprong, after the conclusion of his first full professional season in Wilkes-Barre.
Sprong finished the regular season as Wilkes-Barre's leading scorer, recording 32 goals and 33 assists in 65 games. He didn't see quite the same success in the postseason, only recording one goal in three games, and he was a minus-4 overall.
He said it still hasn't sunk in yet that the season is over.
"Getting swept is never fun," he told reporters on Friday's cleanout day. "Those three games sting, and I think after a couple weeks, it's slowly going to go away, but it's never fun losing that quick in the playoffs and only getting one chance to play at home."
Despite the disappointing postseason, Sprong felt he made progress in his overall game — especially in the area that he struggled with the most early in the season, his defensive game.
"I think the coaching staff has really helped me with my 200-foot game," he said. "Coming in at the beginning of the year, I was still kind of cheating, looking for breaks. As the year went on, I think I came inside the game more, and that created more offense. I think that credits to a lot of my success in the offensive zone."
When I spoke to coach Clark Donatelli at the midpoint of the season, he said Sprong has "all the talent in the world" and he was prepared for an opportunity in Pittsburgh. After Sprong was sent back down to Wilkes-Barre in January, at times, he still struggled defensively and even slumped offensively.
The coaching staff worked with Sprong to improve all areas of his game, even making him a healthy scratch so he could watch the game from a different angle. He's still going to be an offensive player first and foremost, but he's more well-rounded after his first season in Wilkes-Barre.
"People are always going to say I'm not the 200-foot player that everyone wants," Sprong said. "But I think I made it a long way. At the end of the day, I'm an offensive player, and I thought I made big strides in my defensive side. I think the coaching staff trusts me as the season went on."
Sprong's goals for the coming months are simple.
"Have a good summer, come back in shape and be ready to earn a spot."