15 Players Who Have Surprised

Here's fifteen players (well, one is a former player) who have surprised me this preseason:

1. Brett Bulmer. I wasn't 100% sure that this guy would ever play in the NHL before this training camp. Now it looks like he'll be on the opening night roster for the Minnesota Wild (partially thanks to Staubitz getting suspended). I don't know much about his game, but apparently he gets under the skin of his opponents and has some decent hands around the net.
2. Jaromir Jagr. He's 39 and hasn't played in the NHL in years, but he's shown he'll at the very least be a force on the power play for Philadelphia. 
3. Evgeni Malkin. It's only preseason, but Geno looks poised to return to superstardom. 
4. Mark Scheifele. I really had no idea who Scheifele was when Winnipeg drafted him 7th overall in June, but every time I've watched the Jets he's been the type of player who is capable of creating a scoring chance every time he gets the puck. I feel as if he'll at least get a nine game look with the Jets this year.
5. Sidney Crosby. After his first press conference about his concussion, it seemed as if it would be lucky if was back by the end of the season. Now he's practicing and scrimmaging and inching closer to contact. Love him or hate him, Crosby being healthy is great for the NHL and hockey. Even haters must admit that rivalries with the Penguins are more fun when he's on the ice.
6. Jake Gardiner. Toronto's prospect has been their best defenseman in the preseason. 
7. Matt Read. He wasn't on many people's radar this summer when Philly was making all of their moves, but he looks like he'll make the team. 
8. Matthew Lombardi. It now looks like Lombardi will be ready for the start of the season, making Nashville look terrible for trading him away with Franson for absolutely nothing. That was a brutal cap dumping move.
9. David Perron. Great to see that the young star will soon be able to practice with teammates. 
10. Peter Mueller. The fourth player on this list because of his recovery from a concussion (Crosby, Lombardi, Perron). Once again, great to see him getting healthy. 
11. Ryan Murphy. An offensive defenseman who slipped in the draft and looks poised in training camp, he could be this year's Cam Fowler.
12. Paul Postma. Winnepeg's prospect has looked good so far. I don't think he'll make the team with Enstrom, Byfuglien, and Bogosian already able to carry the offense from Winnipeg's backend. 
13. Fabian Brunnstrom. The former YouTube star faded away last year, but has looked good in a try out with the Red Wings. 
14. Jared Spurgeon. Minnesota's small defenseman looks ready to help make up for the loss of Brent Burns's scoring from the blue line. 
15. Brendan Shanahan. The former NHL star and current NHL sheriff has released a video that has clearly explained each suspension he has given. This is terrific in helping people understand suspensions. He has also shown that he will suspend players for a lengthy period of time.