Paul Bittner
Introduction
Paul Bittner (born November 4, 1996) is an American professional ice hockey Winger who is currently assigned to the Cleveland Monsters of the American Hockey League (AHL) as a prospect of the Columbus Blue Jackets in the National Hockey League (NHL). Bittner has played major junior hockey with the Portland Winterhawks of the Western Hockey League (WHL). Bittner was rated as a top prospect who was widely projected to be a first round selection in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft. He was, however, selected 38th overall, in the second round by the Blue Jackets in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft.
Playing career
In 2012, Bittner joined the Portland Winterhawks of the Western Hockey League. and in his first year he helped the Winterhawks capture the Ed Chynoweth Cup as the 2012–13 WHL Champions. During the 2014–15 season he was rewarded for his outstanding play when he was selected to skate in the 2015 CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game.
On August 20, 2015, Bittner was signed to a three-year entry-level contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets. After attending the Blue Jackets training camp, Bittner was returned to his junior club, the Winterhawks for the 2015–16 season. Hampered by injury, Bittner was limited to just 25 games with Portland, recording 21 points. Upon the completion of the Winterhawks season and a return to health, Bittner was reassigned to AHL affiliate, the Lake Erie Monsters, on April 13, 2016, to make his professional debut to end the regular season.
International play
Bittner competed with Team USA at the 2013 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament.
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2011–12 | Crookston High | USHS | 25 | 15 | 6 | 21 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2012–13 | Portland Winterhawks | WHL | 45 | 12 | 11 | 23 | 12 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2013–14 | Portland Winterhawks | WHL | 63 | 22 | 27 | 49 | 27 | 21 | 6 | 6 | 12 | 11 | ||
| 2014–15 | Portland Winterhawks | WHL | 66 | 34 | 37 | 71 | 52 | 17 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 6 | ||
| 2015–16 | Portland Winterhawks | WHL | 25 | 10 | 11 | 21 | 21 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2015–16 | Lake Erie Monsters | AHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2016–17 | Cleveland Monsters | AHL | 31 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| AHL totals | 33 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
International
| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | United States | IH18 | 02 ! |
5 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | |
| Junior totals | 5 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | ||||
Awards and honors
| Honors | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament | 2013 | |
| CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game | 2015 |