Andy Rogers

Name: Andy Rogers
Position: Defenseman
Shoots: Left
Height: 6.05
Weight: 206 lbs
Born: 8/8/86
Acquired: 2004 Entry Draft, 1st Round, 30 Overall

Junior Career
Rogers was selected in the 3rd round, 52nd overall, of the 2001 WHL Bantam Draft by the Calgary Hitmen organization. In his first two seasons of junior hockey he had a modest 7 points in total but he gained the reputation as a solid stay at home defenseman with a reputation for playing physical in front of his own net. In 2003 Rogers played for Canada in the U-18 World Junior Cup. The following season he skated for the silver medal winning Canadian team at the U-18 World Junior Championships. The young defensemen was also selected to play at the 2004 CHL Top Prospects game and scored well in skills testing with a sub three seconds 60 foot dash time, a sub six seconds 150 foot dash time and a slapshot gunned at 96.8 mph. With that in mind, the Lightning selected Rogers with the final pick of the first round in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft. The following season Rogers was selected to play for Team WHL in the 2004 ADT Canada-Russia Challenge but was sidelined with an ankle injury. Rogers would end up playing just 18 games for the Hitmen that season before being traded to the Prince George Cougars. In all, Rogers had 11 points between Calgary and Prince George which was a marked improvement over his previous two seasons' production, but the ankle problems would reemerge to haunt him later. In the Fall of 2005 Rogers attended his second Traverse City prospect tournament with the Tampa Bay Lightning and led the team in scoring with 1 goal and 6 points in 4 games. His strong play continued through the Lightning's regular training camp and he was the last defenseman cut at the start of the season. Despite his reassignment to junior, the Lightning signed Rogers to a standard entry level contract before he returned to Prince George. Rogers then attended the Canadian developmental camp for their U-20 World Junior Championship team, but was dismissed in the first round of cuts from the team. Unfortunately, Rogers injured his ankle again and played just 21 games for the Cougars in the 2005-2006 season.

Professional Career
Rogers played his rookie season of professional hockey with Springfield of the AHL where he had 0 goals and 7 points in 48 games with 39 penalty minutes and a -19 rating. Rogers' progress was slowed at midseason by a hip injury which kept him out of the lineup for roughly a month, further complicating his development.

Talent Analysis
Pros:
At 6’5” and more than 200 pounds, Rogers has NHL size and reach. Combining those two factors with his effortless skating ability, and it’s nearly a given that a healthy Andy Rogers can log significant minutes in the “new” NHL. A physical player, Rogers has good character, is coachable, and possesses the work ethic desired by the Lightning. The organization is also pleased with his passing ability out of the defensive zone.

Cons:
While Rogers’ defensive game earned him an NHL contract, his offensive game could keep him from becoming a top-pair defenseman. Aside from the 2005 Traverse City prospect tournament, Rogers has shown very little offense in his game. He could also use a few off-seasons in the weight room and more of a mean-streak. As most young players do, Rogers tends to lose focus during games resulting in mental errors, but that should be corrected as he matures as a person and a player.

Rogers is quickly getting the “injury-prone” label because of ankle issues, however he had surgery on the ankle in January and is not expected to have any reoccurring issues.

Future
As was mentioned, Rogers’ size and skating ability will take him far, but probably not to the first pair. He projects as a third or fourth defenseman who could play 20-plus minutes a night, but will only see significant power play time if his offensive game develops. If a focused Rogers proves to be a consistent physical presence on the blueline, he could draw shut-down assignments as his career progresses, because he certainly has the size and skating ability for the role.

Statistics Courtesy hockeydb.com

Profile Created 2/5/06 by Pete Choquette and Chad Schnarr