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Washington Capitals: Jayson Megna’s lone season in Hershey

By Michael Marzzacco

HERSHEY, PA - DECEMBER 21: Hershey Bears center Jason Megna (36) skates before the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins at Hershey Bears on December 21, 2018 at the Giant Center in Hershey, PA. (Photo by Randy Litzinger/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
HERSHEY, PA - DECEMBER 21: Hershey Bears center Jason Megna (36) skates before the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins at Hershey Bears on December 21, 2018 at the Giant Center in Hershey, PA. (Photo by Randy Litzinger/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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There were many great players to follow on the Hershey Bears that never suited up for a Washington Capitals game once. Meet Jayson Megna.

Jayson Megna’s road to the Washington Capitals organization was a unique one. The undrafted center signed his first NHL contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins, made his league debut on Oct. 25 and scored his first goal and assist three nights later against the Carolina Hurricanes.

Megna recorded nine points (5 goals, 4 assists) in 36 games with Pittsburgh while adding 15 points (9 goals, 6 assists) in 25 games with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. The next season, Megna scored a career-high 26 goals and added 13 assists for 39 points in 63 games in what would be his final season in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. Megna additionally played in 12 NHL games that season, notching one assist.

In the summer of 2015, Megna signed a one-year, two-way deal with the New York Rangers. Megna notched 44 points in 68 games with the Hartford Wolf Pack, including an AHL career-high 29 assists to go along with 15 goals. Megna also appeared in six games with the Rangers and registered a goal and an assist.

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Megna then signed a contract with the Vancouver Canucks which he extended for an extra season. In 2016-17, Megna got the most taste of NHL action with 58 games after getting recalled from the AHL in late October. Megna finished the season with eight points (four goals, four assists) including a two-goal game on Dec. 8, 2016 in a Canucks 5-1 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The next season, Megna appeared in just one game in Vancouver and 25 for the Utica Comets, registering 13 points (4 goals, 9 assists). In the summer of 2018, Megna signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Capitals that carried a value of $650,000 and $315,000 in the AHL.

Megna was one of those players in the Capitals system that never got to don a red Capitals sweater but that didn’t mean he wasn’t a star. He was a key component on the Bears and had a role of centering a viscous top-six attack.

Megna was fourth on the Bears with 43 points and 23 assists, respectively, as well as third on the team in goals with 20. Eight of Megna’s 20 goals came on the power play and five were game-winners. Part of the reason why Megna never got called up last season was the center depth established in Washington.

On the fourth line, which presented an opening with Jay Beagle‘s departure, Nic Dowd established himself at center and Travis Boyd could slot at that position when called upon. Things just didn’t pan out but Megna was a star in Hershey. The Bears rallied to make the Calder Cup playoffs and Megna recorded eight points (four goals, four assists) in the nine games he suited up for.

dark. Next. Riley Barber, a promise not kept yet?

Earlier this month when free agency hit, Megna signed with his fifth NHL club, the Colorado Avalanche on a one-year, two-way, $700,000 deal. It is another Bear that departed the den but another fun player that left an impact that’ll live in.

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