There is no way to sugarcoat being the last player selected in the NHL Draft. All a hockey player can do after that is work hard and hope to prove people wrong.

That is just what Trotman did as the final player taken in 2010, when he was a seventh-round pick (No. 210) of the Boston Bruins. After completing two more seasons at Lake Superior State University and getting a little seasoning in the American Hockey League, the defenseman from Carmel, Ind., made his NHL debut Dec. 28, 2013, against the Ottawa Senators.

An ideal size for an NHL defenseman at 6-foot-3 and 217 pounds, Trotman is a good puck-mover with a long reach and a willingness to seek out contact. He appeared in two games with the Bruins during the 2013-14 season and got his first NHL point in his second game the following season, with an assist against the Minnesota Wild on Oct. 28, 2014.

Trotman had three assists over his first 10 games that season. His first NHL goal, with 2:08 to play in regulation against the Detroit Red Wings on April 2, 2015, was the game-winner.

Over 38 games in 2015-16 season, Trotman had two goals, seven points and 71 hits, including a 10-hit game against the Senators on Dec. 27, 2015. Trotman became a free agent after the season and signed a one-year contract with the Los Angeles Kings on July 1, 2016.

Before his NHL career, Trotman showed promise in the minor leagues and collegiate hockey. In 2011-12 he led Lake Superior State defensemen with 11 goals in 40 games as a junior. He joined Providence of the AHL at the end of the season and scored the winning goal in his first professional game on March 23, 2012.

Trotman finished that season with a goal and three points in nine games. The following season he tied for third among Providence defensemen with 16 points in 48 games.