This week we are going to look at some notable players who will be playing in the Western Conference for the first time.

We will also list some players who have been added to the same teams in a similar situation in prior years and see how they have done.

Some players struggle on a new team let alone a new conference in the first season but it is not always easy to determine why. In some prior seasons, the Western Conference was perhaps a better skating conference, but I don't think there is that much of a distinction now.  

I'm sure everyone fears owning a player in fantasy like Jonathan Huberdeau who gets dealt to a new conference and sees their point totals go from 110  to 55.

On the flipside there was Jonathan Marchessault going from 51 points in Tampa Bay to 75 points in Vegas.

Alex Killorn – Anaheim

After 11 campaigns and 805 regular season games with Tampa Bay in the East, the 33-year-old (soon to be 34) Killorn is taking his game to Anaheim for the next four years as he possesses a no-trade clause for the duration. Killorn has 199 goals and 268 points in his 805 games (0.58 points/game) but has had three of the past four years in Tampa Bay above 0.72 points per game.

Recent Eastern Adds:

Adam Henrique came over to Anaheim after six and a bit seasons in New Jersey. In the year he was acquired he played 24 games with the Devils and had four goals and nine assists and then took off a little with the Ducks as he put up 20 goals and 17 assists in 57 games. His Western points per game has been 223 points in 375 games (0.59) while in the East it was 257 points in 455 games (0.56).

The experiment hasn't gone so well with Ryan Strome who played 100 games with Edmonton and had just 14 goals and 22 assists while there. In his first year in Anaheim he had 15 goals and 26 assists in 82 games. His Western Conference totals have been 77 points in 182 games (0.42). In 522 games in the Eastern Conference he had 116 goals and 206 assists (0.62).

Frank Vatrano played his first 400 NHL games with Boston, Florida and the NY Rangers before joining the Ducks in 2022-23. In the East he had 170 points in 400 games (0.43) and showed well in Anaheim with 41 points in 81 games (0.51).

Radko Gudas – Anaheim

Gudas has played all of his 682 career games in the East with Tampa Bay, Philadelphia, Washington and Florida. He comes to the Ducks with career totals of 33 goals, 131 assists, 2,562 hits (3.76) and 1,157 blocks (1.69). It will be interesting to see how Gudas adapts to defending the likes of Connor McDavid and Nathan MacKinnon more than the two times he would normally oppose them during the season in the East. I think he will still get his hits and blocks but the support he had in Florida won't be there in the short-term in Anaheim.   

Yegor Sharangovich – Calgary

Sharangovich played all 205 of his NHL games in New Jersey and had 53 goals and 53 assists (0.52). In 2022-23 his production dipped along with his shots on goal (2.2/game to 1.7), shooting percentage (14.4 to 9.9) and ice time (16:30 to 14:25).

The Flames are likely to increase his ice time from 14:25 per game, but the other stats will be in his hands. He had eight goals and 14 points in his first 23 games (0.61) and tailed off considerably with just 16 points in his last 52 games (0.31). In his first two NHL seasons he was between 0.56 and 0.61 points per game.

Recent Eastern Adds:

Flames fans might be concerned with the lack of success for Jonathan Huberdeau and Mackenzie Weegar both coming over from the East. Huberdeau had played 671 games with Florida and put up 613 points (0.91) in 10 seasons. He managed just 55 points in 79 games (0.70) in Calgary.

Weegar had played 306 games in five years in Florida and had 27 goals, 94 assists (0.39), 611 hits (1.99) and 482 blocks (1.57). In his first season in Calgary Weegar put up four goals, 27 assists, 31 points (0.38), 186 hits (2.29), 117 blocks (1.44) in 81 games.

From an overall perspective it wasn't that disappointing for Weegar, it was strictly production as he had been between 0.55 and 0.67 points per game in Florida in his last two years there. The good news is that he had 13 points in his final 19 games (0.68).

Blake Coleman was brought in by Calgary before the 2021-22 season after playing over four seasons with New Jersey and Tampa Bay. In the East he had 126 points in 301 games (0.42) and while with Calgary has 71 points in 163 games (0.44).

Ross Colton – Colorado

The soon to be 27-year-old Colton had played three years in Tampa Bay with 47 goals, 36 assists, 83 points (0.44) and 377 hits (1.98) in 190 games. He comes to Colorado with a chance to anchor the third line on a top-heavy forward group. With 16 and 22 goals in each of the past two years, he should slide up and down the top-three lines with the Avalanche.

Miles Wood – Colorado

Wood is the second forward that the Avalanche have brought in for 2023-24 after spending his whole career in the East where he played 402 games for New Jersey and had 78 goals, 70 assists and 486 hits (1.21) which was good for 0.37 points per game. The additions of he and Colton should really bolster the bottom-six in Colorado which was a real weakness for them in 2022-23.

Jonathan Drouin – Colorado

Drouin has been in the NHL for nine seasons and has played just 485 games with Tampa Bay and Montreal where he has posted 76 goals and 204 assists for 280 points (0.58). He hadn't played more than 58 games since he played 81 in 2018-19. He should be able to contribute on the power play if given a chance as 94 of his 280 career points are with the man advantage. He is a possible low-risk/high-reward addition to this lineup.

Recent Eastern Adds:

Artturi Lehkonen played 396 games with Montreal before coming over to the Avalanche at the trade deadline in 2021-22. With Montreal he had 74 goals, 75 assists, 149 points (0.38) of which just eight were on the power play. In 80 games with Colorado he had 27 goals, 33 assists, 60 points (0.75) and had 23 PPPs.

Devon Toews played 116 games with the NY Islanders to begin his career and had 11 goals, 35 assists and 46 points (0.40) and was a plus-eight. In 199 games since coming to Colorado and the West, Toews had 29 goals, 109 assists, 138 points (0.69) and was an impressive plus-120. 

Colorado has had great success recently in bringing in new players from the East.

Connor Brown – Edmonton

Brown had played all of his 447 career games in the East with Toronto, Ottawa and Washington where he had 90 goals, 126 assists and 216 points (0.48). He only managed four games with Washington in 2022-23 and there seems to be some hope he can elevate his production by being reunited with his former junior linemate Connor McDavid. Brown is a skilled forward who needs to stay healthy. If he plays 70 games he should be able to produce at least 50 points on this team.

Recent Eastern Adds:

Zach Hyman played his first 344 NHL games with Toronto and put up 84 goals, 99 assists, 183 points (0.53), 479 hits and 11 PPPs. In 155 games in Edmonton he had 63 goals, 84 assists, 147 points (0.95), 151 hits and 36 PPPs. Everything clicked in 2022-23 where had 36 goals and 47 assists.

Cody Ceci played eight seasons and 548 games with Ottawa, Toronto and Pittsburgh before coming to Edmonton in 2021-22. His Eastern totals were 37 goals, 107 assists, 144 points (0.26) with 762 hits (1.39), 912 blocks (1.66). So far in Edmonton he has played 158 games with six goals, 37 assists, 43 points (0.27) with 256 hits (1.62) and 232 blocks (1.47). Ceci has been fairly consistent in either conference.

Brian Dumoulin – Seattle

Dumoulin had played every one of his 546 career games in Pittsburgh before joining the Kraken as a free agent this summer. He had 19 goals, 120 assists, 139 points (0.25) with 762 hits (1.39) and 816 blocks (1.79). He should fit right in with the defense who are already in Seattle as most of them are physical and block shots. Dumoulin wasn't added to provide offense.

Recent Eastern Add:

Oliver Bjorkstrand was acquired from Columbus after playing all of his 382 NHL games there where he had 111 goals, 123 assists and 234 points (0.61). In his first year with the Kraken he had 20 goals, 25 assists and 45 points (0.55) in 81 games. It was a little disappointing after Bjorkstrand had put up 137 points (0.74) in 185 games with Columbus over the three prior seasons.

Thanks very much for reading and if you have any comments or suggestions, please leave them below or follow me on Twitter @gampbler15