He was right, although he probably visualized his breakthrough season coming under the bright lights of Broadway rather than the relative anonymity of Canada's rugged western plains.

"It was disappointing because it was where I started my career," Savard admitted to SportsLine.com as he recalled the draft-day trade in 1999 that sent him to Calgary from the Rangers. "But it's a part of the business you have to deal with, so you move on."

Pushing aside the initial shock about the swap, Savard responded to added playing time in Calgary by netting 22 goals and finishing fourth on the Flames in scoring. This year, after signing a multi-year contract worth $3 million, the 23-year-old native of Ottawa has picked up where he left off with five goals and 14 assists in 20 games to share the team lead in scoring.

Marc Savard is on track for an 80-point season.(Allsport)

It has been the kind of production that has been predicted of Savard since he was drafted in 1995.

A scoring sensation at every level he has played, Savard gained a great deal of attention during his junior career with Oshawa of the Ontario Hockey League, where he won two league scoring titles and and rewrote the record books of a franchise that once had guys named Bobby Orr and Eric Lindros on its roster.

No one doubted that Savard had the ability to play in the NHL -- scouts raved that he had outstanding skills and exceptional hockey sense in their pre-draft reports -- but the fact that he was only five-foot-ten made for a lively debate about whether he could withstand the rigors of the game at its highest level.

"I've always heard size, size, size, but that's what other people say," Savard said. "You just have to put that behind you and work through it by proving to people you can play."

The Rangers decided he was worth the risk, and gambled a fourth-round pick to select the player 91st overall. Two years later, Savard seemed to justify their faith when he was voted top rookie in their 1997 training camp, his debut as a pro. The first-year player made the team's opening night roster, but ended up spending most of his time that season in Hartford of the AHL.

In 1998, he made the NHL to stay, but saw his ice time decrease as the season wore on and the Rangers turned to veterans in a futile attempt to avoid their second straight non-playoff campaign.

When the Rangers signed free agent college star Mike York at the end of the 1999 season, Savard was deemed expendable. On draft day two months later, he went to Calgary for the rights to Jan Hlavac and a swap of first-round picks.

It is still something that irks him.

"I got to play with Wayne Gretzky, my idol growing up, and that was one of my goals," he snapped when asked to characterize his treatment in New York.

Now he gets to play with Jarome Iginla, a speedy right winger who is considered one of the top young power forwards in the game. Joined last year by left winger Andrei Nazarov, and this year by Cory Stillman, the duo have given the maturing Flames one of the league's more effective offensive forces.

"He's a very creative player and he's very competitive," Iginla said. "The thing I like about playing with him is that if you get yourself open, he'll find a way to get the puck to you."

Savard also finds a way to keep the puck away from opponents, which is as much the reason for his offensive success as anything else, says first-year Flames coach Don Hay.

"It may sound funny, but Marc is getting more points and more chances because he's playing better defensively," said Hay. "He's doing a really good job of coming back into the defensive zone and being a support guy. That puts you in a good position to go on the offense."

Savard agreed that his overall game has improved because of his emphasis on playing both ends of the ice, but he argued that getting a chance to show what he can do is the key.

"I think I've been a good player at every level I've played, and I always felt that I could succeed in the NHL if I got the chance," he said. "Sometimes you have to deal with circumstances, but I'm getting an opportunity here in Calgary and I plan to make the most of it."