Undrafted 5th year left wing Jared Gomes(12) looked as though he was ready to play out the season in the new Alps Hockey League with Ritten Renon as he joined them for the Continental Cup Tournament grabbing two goals and two assists in 3 games.
Instead he decided to head back over to Germany’s DEL2 signing with SC Riessersee for the remainder of 2016/2017.
The sturdy 6’1 189 lbs. forward skated 41 games in the higher league for Straubing Tigers scoring 4 goals and 10 assists a couple of seasons ago.
After this campaign, he returned to North American pro hockey, where he started playing two years for San Antonio Rampage and had his highest point totals as a rookie potting 16 goals and 17 assists for 33 points.
For 2015/2016 he signed with Bridgeport Sound Tigers, establishing himself as a hard-checking, hard to play against instigator that could affect the score sheet on occasion.
He scored almost a point per game in his final run in juniors with Mississauga Steelheads, then went on to play three years of college hockey at University Of Prince Edward Island.
Now 28-years old, it will be interesting to see what direction he takes next.
Undrafted 5th year left wing Jared Gomes(12) looked as though he was ready to play out the season in the new Alps Hockey League with Ritten Renon as he joined them for the Continental Cup Tournament grabbing two goals and two assists in 3 games.
Instead he decided to head back over to Germany’s DEL2 signing with SC Riessersee for the remainder of 2016/2017.
The sturdy 6’1 189 lbs. forward skated 41 games in the higher league for Straubing Tigers scoring 4 goals and 10 assists a couple of seasons ago.
After this campaign, he returned to North American pro hockey, where he started playing two years for San Antonio Rampage and had his highest point totals as a rookie potting 16 goals and 17 assists for 33 points.
For 2015/2016 he signed with Bridgeport Sound Tigers, establishing himself as a hard-checking, hard to play against instigator that could affect the score sheet on occasion.
He scored almost a point per game in his final run in juniors with Mississauga Steelheads, then went on to play three years of college hockey at University Of Prince Edward Island.
Now 28-years old, it will be interesting to see what direction he takes next.
10th year veteran left wing Chris Porter(24) was left unrestricted by his last team Minnesota Wild heading into 2016/2017 after skating a career high 61 regular season NHL games (4-3-7 points) then 6 more in the playoffs (1 goal).
Signed to a two-way contract by Philadelphia Flyers before the start of 2015/2016, he was reassigned to the minors but never made it before being claimed off waivers.
The 6’1″ 206 lbs. forward was invited to join the team he’d spent the first 8 years of his pro career with St. Louis Blues‘ training camp at the beginning of the current calendar but was released before the start.
A month into the new campaign he signed a pto with Providence Bruins and in 9 AHL games has 6 assists with a +2 rating.
Originally a Chicago Blackhawks‘ 9th round pick in the 2003 draft (#282 overall), he played 234 big league games mostly in a fourth line checking role.
He was always a decent point producer through 4 years at University Of North Dakota scoring 10+ goals and 15+ assists in three of his seasons.
The 32-year old may only stick around for another run in North America before deciding to find some better ice overseas before he hangs up the skates but that remains to be seen.
Montreal Canadiens‘ 5th round pick in the 2014 draft (#147 overall) center Daniel Audette(24) had three point-per-game seasons in the QMJHL with Sherbrooke Phoenix as assistant captain before signing his three year entry level deal.
A late training camp cut, he was reassigned to start his rookie year with affiliate St. John’s IceCaps.
The small 5/9″ 176 lbs. quick, good stick handling forward has his first pro goal and 5 assists with a -2 rating in 18 AHL games.
He signed an ato joining the team after his junior career concluded playing 4 games at the end of 2015/2016 scoring no points.
The son of former NHL star Donald Audette will need to play a big game and continue to set up plays and find the back of the net.
7th year center Philip McRae(17) signed his second minor league contract with Hartford Wolf Pack for 2016/2017 after a rocky season skating for Bakersfield Condors, where he was only available for 35 AHL games.
Originally a St. Louis Blues‘ 2nd round pick in the 2008 draft (#33 overall), he spent the first three years with the team on an entry level deal and played his only 15 contests in the big league as a rookie scoring an NHL goal and a pair of assists.
The decently sized 6’2″ 201 lbs. forward was mostly reassigned to affiliate Peoria Rivermen and posted his best stats in his sophomore campaign playing a record 71 games scoring 23 goals and 16 assists.
Unfortunately he’s also a combined -45 in 278 games in the minors including a -11 currently with 4 points through 14 match-ups.
He had one seasons overseas in Finland’s Liiga spending time first with Tappara for only 8 appearances before finishing the calendar as part of Blues‘ lineup.
For his follow-up year he returned to St. Louis but spent the entire run with Chicago Wolves.
The 26-year old comes from a pro hockey pedigree. His dad was Basil McRae, a veteran of 576 games in the show.
It wold be little surprise to see him leave the country once again to see if he can gain more ground overseas.
9th year goaltender Mark Dekanich(31) is off to a rocky start with new team Reading Royals early in 2016/2017 after signing a one-year deal with Lehigh Valley Phantoms.
In 10 ECHL games he has a 3-6-0-1 record with a disappointing 3.58 GAA and .893 SV% on a team that is also struggling slightly out of the gate.
This is in sharp contrast to just a year earlier, when the decently-sized net minder appeared in 35 regular season contests for South Carolina Stingrays, while under contract with Hershey Bears.
He recorded a quite healthy 20-9-2-2 mark with a 2.16 GAA and .925 SV% including 2 shutouts, then went 5-3 in 10 Kelly Cup Playoff games with another pair of blankings, 1.69 GAA and .922 SV% through the Eastern Conference Finals before bowing out.
Previous to returning to North American hockey, he had a pair of stints in the KHL for Medevescak Zagreb.
His first season went well but unfortunately deteriorated in his second.
The 30-year old former Colgate University standout may be running out of time on the ice but would make for an outstanding goalie coach post-career.
New York Rangers‘ 2nd round pick in the 2012 draft (#59 overall) rookie center Cristoval Nieves(67) got right to work when he signed an ato with affiliate Hartford Wolf Pack at the end of his college career at University Of Michigan.
He was a very decent scorer through his four years, always reaching around 30 points in just over 3o games in three of his campaigns.
The fairly sizable 6’3″ 219 lbs. forward struck for 2 goals and 3 assists in his first 8 AHL games.
Reassigned to the farm squad to start he seemed to pick up where he left off, getting a goal and 5 assists in 13 games before scoring a quick NHL recall.
In his debut he skated 17 shifts for 11:44 of total ice time with a -1 rating in a 7-2 team blowout victory.
The 22-year old seems to be just getting started and from early looks in the minors could easily become a force in the big league.
Montreal Canadiens‘ 8th year left wing Chris Terry(15) signed a one-year two-way contract as an unrestricted free agent with his first new team since being drafted by Carolina Hurricanes.
The quick moving forward spent the entire 2015/2016 up with the big club but mostly split time or was reassigned to minor league affiliates Charlotte Checkers and as a rookie back in 2009/2010 with Albany River Rats.
He has been a 5 time 30+ assists performer with the farm club and 3 times scored 60 points or better.
With new squad St. John’s IceCaps he’s already a point per game player with 5 goals and 10 assists in 14 AHL games, although he was just recently recalled and if he can connect may stay up for an extended time.
He had similar scoring results through four years in the OHL with Plymouth Whalers, serving as team captain in his last two.
The 27-year old is definitely on the cusp between the two top leagues but inserted into the potent Habs‘ lineup could see a surge.
Florida Panthers‘ 10th year Swiss-born goaltender Reto Berra(20) is off to a fantastic start with new affiliate Springfield Thunderbirds.
In 7 games he has a 5-2 record with a glowing 1.72 GAA and .934 SV%, including his first three shutouts in the league ever.
The big 6’4″ 200 lbs. net minder was also just named Player Of The Week for his offense stunning .50 GAA and .981 SV% in two team wins.
Originally a St. Louis Blues‘ 4th round pick in the 2006 draft (#106 overall), he spent the first 6 years of his pro career in his home country’s NLA with stints for HC Davos, EV Zug and EHC Biel-Bienne.
He played all his junior hockey in Switzerland, while also appearing in 32 games throughout that time in the top league and NLB from 2003-2007.
In his second season, he won the 2008 Championship.
He wouldn’t actually arrive to North American hockey until 2013/2014 on a 1-year entry level deal from Calgary Flames but didn’t even last a full campaign despite 29 NHL appearances before being traded at the deadline to Colorado Avalanche.
Almost strategically he signed a three-year extension just after the transaction and would play most of the calendar in the top league during the first year of his new contract but split time almost equally with farm club San Antonio Rampage for his follow-up.
The 29-year old was traded in the off-season, joining his third team but will have to continue to play amazingly well to find time in the show with a cluttered lineup of able bodies guarding the cage.
He’s also only one of only 11 goalies to ever score in the AHL.
Undrafted 5th year net minder Michael Houser(1) signed a contract at the beginning of 2016/2017 with defending Calder Cup Champions Cleveland Monsters but was only with the them for a few days before being reassigned to start the season with Cincinnati Cyclones.
He was actually in Columbus Blue Jackets‘ training camp on a pto before the late transaction occurred.
In 4 ECHL games the 6’2″ 194 lbs. goalie has a 2-2 record with one shutout and a 2.41 GAA and .924 SV%.
He actually returns to the Ohio team, where he spent his entire rookie campaign and played parts of his sophomore year.
The former Florida Panthers‘ prospect arguably had no better stint than in 2014/2015, the final year of his entry level deal with AHL affiliate San Antonio Rampage, as he helped backstop the team into the playoffs posting a 19-9-4 record with 4 shutouts.
In his final year before turning pro, he basically won all the accolades of playing junior hockey with London Knights winning the 2012 OHL Championship and picked up leauge top honors in his position, CHL Goaltender Of The Year and OHL Most Outstanding Player (Red Tilson Trophy).
At 24-years old he still seems to have a lot of time left to prove his game but there’s no time like the present for him to start making more good impressions.
