Undrafted 5th year defenseman Mitch Jones(6) starts the new frame under contract with Jacksonville Icemen but after 9 games scoring a goal and two assists he has informed the club he’s signed with Gyergyoi HK of Erste Liga for the remainder of 2019/2020.
The 5’11” 198 lbs. blue liner has skated 181 ECHL games with 4 teams and also played 3 seasons in the OHL for Plymouth Whalers.
He has never really been a the biggest point getter but did connect for career highs 6 goals and 13 assists with a +24 rating in his one campaign with Cincinnati Cyclones.
The 24-year old has done pretty well with 3 goals and 3 assists in the international league and has also been loaned up to the same club for a couple games in the Romanian League.
5th year center Adam Tambellini(23) heads off for a new deal with MODO of Allsvenskan for 2019/2020.
The big 6’4″ 198 lbs. forward has four times reached 30+ points in the AHL with original club Hartford Wolf Pack, while on reassignment from draft club (3rd round, 2015, #65 overall) New York Rangers and last season under a two-way deal to Ottawa Senators but exclusively played for Belleville Senators.
Taking a somewhat journey-filled path before turning pro he started very briefly in the AJHL before heading off to a pair of seasons in the BCHL, where he won the 2013 Championship for Surrey Eagles, then agreed to attend University Of North Dakota for a year but quickly headed for Calgary Hitmen of the WHL notching more than a point-per-game with a +43 rating.
The 24-year old has absolutely exploded in Sweden’s tier 2 league scoring 20 goals and 20 assists in 28 games with a +17 rating and should score an invite to play up in the SHL.
Buffalo Sabres‘ 5th year Swedish-born net minder Jonas Johansson(34) gets a first nod at an NHL start as he approaches a 1st restricted free agent status.
The fairly massive 6’5″ 219 lbs. goalie had been mostly playing with double down affiliate Cincinnati Cyclones, where he appeared in 27 ECHL games for two straight seasons.
He’s been the official starter in the cage with farm team Rochester Americans in the current session and has been impressive posting a 13-3-3-2 record with a 2.19 GAA and .925 SV% in 20 AHL games, which is likely how he’s finally captured the attention of the parent club.
His initial exposure to pro hockey came back home as he was loaned down from Brynas IF, where he played all his junior hockey, to Almtuna IS of Allsvenskan.
The 24-year old could be on the cusp off earning extended time if he can put together some successful outings out of the gate.
New York Rangers‘ 6th year left wing Phillip Di Giuseppe(33) has played big league games in each of his pro seasons after his rookie campaign and scores a 2nd recall and first appearance after striking for 14 goals and 12 assists in 43 AHL games with a +10 rating for affiliate Hartford Wolf Pack.
He’s appeared in 151 NHL games, mostly with draft club Carolina Hurricanes (round 2 in 2012, #38 overall) but also played 3 contests for Nashville Predators after being claimed off waivers.
The 6′ 193 lbs. forward has never exactly been a crazy goal scorer but definitely shows flashes as he did in three years at University Of Michigan, where he put up 10+ assists in each frame and average 10+ goals per session.
At 26-years old, he is set to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the current calendar and will need to prove he can connect to earn another deal.
Montreal Canadiens‘ 6th year Swedish-born defenseman Christian Folin(32) started the new season on the big league roster playing 5 games with 1 assist and a +2 rating before being reassigned to affiliate Laval Rocket.
The big 6’4″ 204 lbs. blue liner has been on a short list for recalls but was unable to crack back into the lineup until recently and now has a 1st NHL goal of 2019/2020.
Undrafted, he was originally signed to a 2-year entry level deal by Minnesota Wild after a pair of seasons in US junior hockey, mostly with Austin Bruins of the NAHL before committing to 2 years at UMass-Lowell.
He re-signed a two-year one-way extension but still split time in the AHL in the first campaign but was fully in the show playing 51 games by 2016/2017.
Left unqualified heading into the next session he was quickly signed by Los Angeles Kings, where he would go on to play a career high 65 games scoring a new best 3 goals and 10 assists for 13 points.
Heading into unrestricted free agency he waited a few days before next signing with Philadelphia Flyers but would find himself as part of a minor deal that sent him north to Quebec.
After 19 games grabbing a goal and 4 assists with a +1 rating, he would agree to stay on for a full-time campaign.
At 28-years old, he could be just arriving on a team who’s style he operates pretty well in.
2nd year left wing Dexter Dancs(90) leaves his 2nd season with Rapid City Rush for a new adventure, joining EHC Winterthur of NLB after playing a career high 36 ECHL games scoring 5 goals and 10 assists.
The 25-year old should be able to do well when settled in Switzerland’s tier 2 league.
Undrafted 3rd year right wing Matt Pohlkamp(11) leaves the nest after putting up a career high 21 goals in split time between Reading Royals and South Carolina Stingrays in 65 ECHL games last season.
The 6′ 198 lbs. forward signs with Coventry Blaze joining his brother Chris in the United Kingdom for 2019/2020.
He has 12 goals and 13 assists in 37 EIHL games and was an outstanding scorer in high school before he went on to put up close to 10 goals and 10+ assists in four years at Bowling Green University.
The 26-year old may have found a nice new hockey home but will definitely need to continue to prove he belongs.
13th year center Paul Szczechura(38) has had quite the run in the KHL since joining the league in 2012/2013 signing with HC Lev Praha.
That lasted only 3 games (0 points) before he left and agreed to terms with Dinamo Riga.
He stayed with the team being productive with offense (17-18-35) for a pair of seasons before leaving for rivals Traktor Chelyabinsk.
This was a good landing spot to stick for the next three years improving his numbers to overseas high totals: 27 assists in 2016/2017 and 20 goals in the next campaign, but unfortunately saw those stats drop markedly in the next frame.
The 33-year old is doing decently with his new club Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod popping in 4 goals and 10 assists in 37 games.
13th year center Aaron Gagnon(11) signs for a 3rd season with SCL Tigers after putting up a solid 14 goals and 14 assists in 39 games.
He originally came to the top Swiss Hockey league after leaving Lukko of Liiga, where he spent four campaigns but at the end of 2016/2017 to joined the SC Bern playoff run, which turned into the 2017 NLA Championship.
Upon leaving a long career of North American pro hockey: 328 AHL games and 38 in the NHL, he initially signed with HV71 but left after only 7 SHL games scoring a goal and 2 assists.
At 33 and sidelined for up to 8 weeks after taking a shot off the foot that required surgery, he probably won’t be moving around much more and hopefully found himself a good league to continue playing.
Upon his return, in 12 games, he has a nifty goal and 4 assists with a +4 rating.
Undrafted 2nd year left wing Drew Melanson(66) signed a tryout agreement with Bayreuth Tigers of DEL2 that turned into a 1-year deal about a month later after scoring two goals and 5 assists in 8 games, which has since exploded into 12 goals and 20 assists for 32 points with a +7 rating.
After finishing up his senior year at Boston University, he signed an ato with Hartford Wolf Pack that was extended for his rookie campaign.
The 5’11” 182 lbs. forward played 10 AHL games scoring a goal but was reassigned to affiliate Maine Mariners for most of his time.
He was a fairly solid 12 goals and 17 assists performer in 50 ECHL games but did have a bit of a dismal -23 rating and was set to join Reading Royals for 2019/2020 before deciding to head overseas for another opportunity.
The 24-year former Waterloo Blackhawks has found success in Germany’s tier two league and could even get a look to head up to DEL for his next move.
