The Florida Panthers selected Cole Krygier in the seventh round of the 2018 NHL Entry Draft after the young blueliner put up 17 points and 107 PIM to along with a +12 in 58 games in his second season with the Lincoln Stars of the USHL.
A left-shooting defenseman with good size, Krygier, along with his twin brother Christian, made the jump from the USHL to Michigan State University in 2018-19. The twins are the sons of former NHLer Todd Krygier.
Krygier scored one goal, against the University of Minnesota on January 20, and added four assists in 26 games as a freshman for the Spartans. He finished the season with a -5 rating and 16 PIM. He had two assists over the final six games of the season, drawing a helper on Adam Goodsir’s game-winning goal against Penn State and then earning another at Ohio State on March 1.
As a sophomore, Krygier scored three goals and added three assists while playing in all 36 games for the 15-19-2 Spartans before the season was called due to the coronavirus outbreak. Two of his goals came in the first four games of the season. After that he settled back into his low-scoring, defensive defenseman ways. Krygier posted an even rating and picked up 20 PIM.
Krygier will most likely return to Michigan State for his junior season. As a seventh round pick, the development track is long and there is no need for him to rush him to the pro ranks.
What does Cole Krygier’s future hold?
| Middle pairing NHLer | 0 |
| Bottom pairing NHLer | 5 |
| NHL/AHL “tweener” | 9 |
| Strictly minor-league fodder | 27 |