British Columbia Hockey League graduate Jason Garrison has proved that the road to the NHL doesn't have to be a rocky, winding one for an undrafted free agent.
On Saturday, Garrison suited up for the Florida Panthers just months after signing his first professional contract with the club. The defenceman was an offensive star with the Nanaimo Clippers, notching 89 points in 109 BCHL games before embarking on a successful NCAA career at the University of Minnesota-Duluth.
Garrison logged 15 shifts and nearly 12 minutes of icetime in his National Hockey League debut against the St. Louis Blues.
The Burnaby, B.C. native left school after his junior season to sign with the Panthers, and scored five points in seven American Hockey League games to open the season. The call from the big club came after injuries sidelined blueliners Bryan McCabe and Bryan Allen.
With a four day break between games for Florida, Garrison was returned to the AHL's Rochester Americans following Saturday's game and played on Sunday. He's likely to rejoin the Panthers for their game against the Ottawa Senators on Thursday if the team's injury troubles persist.
