It’s been a season of transition for Gibsonia, Pa., native Brandon Saad.

After Saad and the Chicago Blackhawks capped off another Stanley Cup win on June 15, the Blackhawks traded the pending restricted free agent to the Columbus Blue Jackets on June 30.

It made for a drastic change for Saad, already in his fifth NHL season. After beginning his career with the dominant Blackhawks, who picked in the second round of the 2011 NHL Entry Draft, Saad had to get used to playing for a much less established team.

“It’s a new team and a new adjustment,” Saad said, “but you always want to win hockey games, so that’s the biggest thing.”

However, the Blue Jackets endured their worst start in franchise history, leading to the dismissal of coach Todd Richards. Midway through the season, the Blue Jackets are still last in the Metropolitan Division.

“When you come along and you start the way we did, it’s tough to bounce back, especially in a league like this,” Saad said. “It has been tough, coming to a new team, especially off of last year with the success and struggling early. It’s a whole new experience.”

Saad scored 52 goals and 126 points in 208 games with the Blackhawks, putting up a career-best 23 goals and 52 points last season.

“It felt great, and I think every year you come in with more experience and you feel better on the ice,” Saad said. “I think being comfortable and playing with a great team and great players helps.

“It was a great year for my career and one I’ll always remember.”

Saad, who won Stanley Cups with the Blackhawks in 2013 and ’15, was an integral part of the most recent championship. He scored eight goals, including a pair of game-winners and a short-handed goal, in 23 playoff games.

“It’s something you work all year for,” Saad said. “The playoffs are a grind, it’s a long haul, and at the end it’s always nice to come out on top.”

Each member of the Stanley Cup-winning team gets to spend a day with the Cup. After being surrounded by friends and family for his 2013 celebration, Saad brought the Cup this past summer to the 911th Airlift Wing near Pittsburgh.

“The first one was kind of a whirlwind, and the second you get to kind of sit back and enjoy it more, so there’s hopefully more to come,” Saad said. “The troops who go over, serve and keep us safe are special, and being an American-born player, that’s something I look up to. It was just great to be around family and friends.”

Saad left his friends and family at an early age to join USA Hockey’s National Team Development Program in 2009, where he led the team with 12 goals and 26 points in 24 games.

“They just teach you how to do the right things and become a pro,” Saad said. “You see guys that come out of that team having success in the NHL.”

Saad was also part of the American team that captured the gold medal in 2010 at the IIHF World Junior Championship.

“To have those memories with those guys, bring home the gold medal and represent your country, there’s nothing better,” Saad said.

“Leaving home and playing against the best players in the world … having that competitiveness and learning at a young age definitely helped my career,” Saad said.

Story from Red Line Editorial, Inc.