Sam Lafferty
American center who played for six NHL teams.
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Sam Lafferty is an American professional ice hockey center who has played for several National Hockey League (NHL) teams, including the Pittsburgh Penguins, Toronto Maple Leafs, Vancouver Canucks, Buffalo Sabres, and Chicago Blackhawks. Born and raised in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania, he was drafted by the Penguins in the 2014 NHL entry draft and played collegiate hockey at Brown University before turning professional.
Lore & Background
Lafferty began playing hockey after being inspired by Mario Lemieux's return to the Pittsburgh Penguins during the 2000–01 NHL season. He attended Hollidaysburg Area High School before moving to Deerfield Academy in Massachusetts, where he tallied 38 goals and 57 assists in 74 games.
He was drafted by the Penguins in 2014 and played four seasons at Brown University, earning All-ECAC Third Team and All-Ivy League honors. Lafferty made his NHL debut with the Penguins on October 8, 2019, and scored his first NHL goal and assist on October 12, 2019. Over his career, he was traded multiple times, moving from Pittsburgh to Chicago, then to Toronto, Vancouver, back to Chicago, to Buffalo, and again back to Chicago before signing with the Florida Panthers as a free agent in 2026.
Reader's Guide
Sam Lafferty's career illustrates the journey of a Pennsylvania-born player who rose through prep school and college hockey to reach the NHL. His path included a standout collegiate career at Brown, where he led the team in scoring as a junior and was a semifinalist for the Walter Brown Award. Lafferty's professional trajectory involved frequent trades, reflecting his role as a depth forward who moved between rebuilding and contending teams.
He experienced a breakout season in 2022–23, establishing new offensive highs before being traded to the Maple Leafs. His career also includes a brief stint with the Sabres where he recorded career lows, followed by a return to Chicago and eventually signing with the Florida Panthers. Lafferty's personal life connects him to NHL lineage through his marriage to Madison Stillman, daughter of former NHL player Cory Stillman.
Career statistics and honours
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 2009–10 | Hollidaysburg Area High | USHS | 19 | 19 | 26 | 45 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2010–11 | Hollidaysburg Area High | USHS | 18 | 34 | 35 | 69 | 26 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2011–12 | Deerfield Academy | USHS | 25 | 8 | 8 | 16 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2012–13 | Deerfield Academy | USHS | 24 | 9 | 15 | 24 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2013–14 | Deerfield Academy | USHS | 25 | 21 | 34 | 55 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2014–15 | Brown University | ECAC | 31 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 16 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2015–16 | Brown University | ECAC | 31 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2016–17 | Brown University | ECAC | 31 | 13 | 22 | 35 | 32 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2017–18 | Brown University | ECAC | 31 | 8 | 14 | 22 | 34 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2017–18 | Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins | AHL | 9 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2018–19 | Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins | AHL | 70 | 13 | 36 | 49 | 94 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2019–20 | Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins | AHL | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2019–20 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 50 | 6 | 7 | 13 | 23 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2020–21 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 34 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 25 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2021–22 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 10 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2021–22 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 46 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 21 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2022–23 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 51 | 10 | 11 | 21 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2022–23 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 19 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 9 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 |
| 2023–24 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 79 | 13 | 11 | 24 | 32 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 2024–25 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 60 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2025–26 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 29 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — |
| NHL totals | 378 | 41 | 51 | 92 | 192 | 21 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | ||
International
| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | United States | WC | 4th | 10 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 |
| 2026 | United States | WC | 8th | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Senior totals | 17 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 12 | |||
Awards and honours
| Award | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| College | ||
| ECAC Third Team | 2017 | |
| All-Ivy League Third Team | 2017 | |
| All-Ivy League Second Team | 2018 | |
Tables copied from the source article, totals included as the source gives them: Wikipedia: Sam Lafferty (CC BY-SA 4.0). Wide tables scroll sideways.
Did You Know?
- He played Division I golf at Brown University and qualified for the 2015 Ivy League Men's Golf Championship.
- Lafferty scored his first collegiate hat-trick on February 23, 2018, against Harvard.
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Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Sam Lafferty (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Statistics, medals and awards: the tables of the source article.
- Word definitions: the Codexery glossary, each quoted from its Wikipedia article.
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