With the Pittsburgh Penguins recently beating the New York Rangers, 5-3, on a boost of two goals from Conor Sheary, let’s take a closer look at the young Penguins’ forward.
Experience
Conor Sheary, a 23 year-old winger for the Penguins, played hockey collegiately at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. During his four years in college, Sheary put up 104 points (38 goals, 66 assists) in 138 games.
After his senior season at UMass-Amerherst, Sheary was given an amateur tryout with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and he made the most of it. He played in the final two regular season games for WBS, before joining the team in the Calder Cup Playoffs. In the 15 games which the junior Penguins played in that playoff campaign, Sheary notched 11 points (6 goals, 5 assists). Those numbers made him the team’s third-leading scorer in the playoffs.
Sheary would spend the entire 2014-15 season in the AHL with WBS. His campaign in the AHL that season would pick up where his efforts in the Calder Cup Playoffs left off. Closing in on nearly a point-per-game, Sheary put up 45 points (20 goals, 25 assists) in 45 games for the Penguins at the AHL level. When they made the playoffs following the regular season, Sheary kicked it up a notch. He registered 12 points (5 goals, 7 assists) in the 8 games his team played that Spring.
2015-16 would see Sheary split time between Pittsburgh and WBS. Shuffling across the state of Pennsylvania, Sheary, as of this post, has played an equal thirty games at the AHL and NHL levels for the season. He’s surpassed the point-per-game mark, with 36 points (7 goals, 29 assists) at the AHL level, while picking up 7 points (5 goals, 2 assists) in his time with Pittsburgh.
Interview
Here is an excellent interview with Conor Sheary from 2015, where he gives some insight into how he came about being a hockey player from Massachusetts:
Scouting Report
Sheary is somewhat diminutive for a winger, listed at 5′ 9″ and 175 lbs. He is solid in build however, which will help him absorb some of the big hits, and he has excellent offensive instincts. He seems to be able to determine where the puck will be, and position himself appropriately. His skills with the puck on his stick are outstanding as well.
Here is a look at Sheary’s first NHL goal, a nice snap shot on a beautiful feed from Sidney Crosby:
He’s also adept at being in the right position to redirect shots from the point as you’ll see here:
Given the chance to perform, Sheary can surely be a depth-forward for the Pittsburgh Penguins, and quite possibly add even a bit more value to the team with his goal-scoring touch.