First, he battled mononucleosis in the summer, then he struggled to find his game, posting just a single assist in 33 games with the Ottawa Senators before they sent him packing to the Calgary Flames at the deadline.
Though he only stands at 6'0" and 210 pounds, he seems larger and plays bigger, which is why the Sens made him a first-round pick (17th overall in 2013) to begin with. That, and leadership skills that saw him lead the Edmonton Oil Kings to the Memorial Cup in 2014 and captain Team Canada to World Juniors gold in 2015.
I know, a single point in half a season is awful, pretty much a waste of a roster spot, I get it. But when a guy is unanimously called a cross between Milan Lucic and Mike Fisher, perhaps he's worth more than a defenseman who'd been on waivers the day prior (Jyrki Jokipakka) and a second-rounder, especially if AHLer Michael Kostka is following him to the Flames organization.
I usually tend to give power forwards until ages 24-26 to prove their worth, but in the age of UFAs and RFAs, I get that teams don't want to overpay for future potential nor use a roster spot to not lose someone on a technicality. Essentially, however, the current rules favor smallish, quick forwards, not the big boys (defensemen or forwards) or goalies, who usually tend to require further seasoning in the minors.
Here is Lazar sporting the Sens' red (home) uniform, on card #NHCD-10 from Upper Deck's 2015 National Hockey Card Day (Canadian Edition) set:
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