The most decorated player in the program's history, Cory Conacher '11 is inching closer to a roster spot with the Tampa Bay Lightning. Conacher is currently at the team's training camp as the Lightning prepare to open the season on Saturday against Washington.

Conacher has spent most of training camp on a line with Vinny Lecavalier and Teddy Purcell, while also playing on the squad's second power-play unit. The 2012 AHL Most Valuable Player and Rookie of the Year, Conacher has 12 goals and 28 assists in 36 games with the Syracuse Crunch this season.

The Burlington, Ontario native has impressed many as he is a favorite to land a roster spot and appear in his first NHL game this season.

"He's got speed, he does things at a very, very high pace,'' Lightning head coach Guy Boucher said. "Now we want to look at what he can do with guys that play NHL high pace that are high end guys. I think he did a good job (in scrimmages), he pushes the pace with them and that's what I'm looking for.

"I want guys that are going to push the pace and is going to be first on the puck with Vinny and Purcell because they make plays. One is a shooter and we need to get the puck deep for Vinny to do his thing on the boards and that means we need somebody fast to push the pace fast in the neutral zone and be first on puck in the offensive zone.''

"He's a fast skater and he's a really smart player," Lecavalier said. "I don't think it's going to take him too long to be successful in this league."

In March of 2012, Conacher became the second Griff to sign an NHL contract, inking a two-year deal with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Conacher set or matched 12 career, single-season and single-game records during his career at Canisius. The 2009-10 Atlantic Hockey Player of the Year owns the program's standards of 147 points, 62 goals and 12 game-winning tallies. He also set the school's records with 53 points and 33 assists during his junior campaign, while breaking the goals mark with 23 in his senior year.