3rd year right wing Matt Willows(90) decides to call it a career after posting a career best 32 goals and 74 points in 72 ECHL games with Reading Royals to become an assistant coach at NCAA III Manhattanville College, where he’ll also being studying to earn his master’s degree.
He also led the team in all scoring categories.
The small, feisty forward leaves the league having scored 77 goals and 124 assists for 201 points through 206 games with a +20 rating.
He started his pro career on an ato with Worcester Sharks but was recalled to the AHL for only one other appearance in 2016/2017 to signing team San Jose Barracuda.
His contract for 2017/2018 was actually with Lehigh Valley Phantoms but wasn’t given a look up.
The 26-year old will turn 27 over the summer and maybe has made a good decision moving forward but will be missed on the ice.
Undrafted center John Dunbar(90) has literally been all over the map with his career but will skate a 2nd season for Guildford Flames after posting a pretty awesome 22 goals and league leading 59 assists in 55 EIHL games.
He showed up after spending the majority of 2016/2017 with Norfolk Admirals connecting for 19 goals and 31 assists in 61 ECHL games on a very subpar team.
The small 5’8″ 175 lbs. forward actually started that season in France2 with Mulhouse playing just 8 games scoring 6 goals and 7 assists before leaving to return to North America.
This followed two years at Northern AB Institute Of Technology of the CCAA, where he helped them win back-to-back championships and led in all scoring categories.
That wasn’t his first consecutive titles though as he started his pro career splitting time with Fort Wayne Komets and Penscola Ice Flyers and won the 2013 and 2014 SPHL titles.
You’d think that would be enough of a hockey story but no, this player even had a year and a half at Quinnipiac University after a pair of mega-successful years for Calgary Canucks of the AJHL but left college to head back to juniors for half a season with Fort McMurray Oil Barons earning a point-per-game.
The 26-year old is probably happy to be spending a 2nd year anywhere but seems to be making a nice home in the United Kingdom’s top league.
Undrafted 6th year Finnish net minder Juho Olkinuora(45) leaves a pair of good seasons with JYP for a one-year deal with Liiga rival Pelicans.
He started his junior hockey in his home country but came over to North America for a year with Sioux Falls Stampede of the USHL before moving onto University Of Denver, where he spent two years shutting the door on NCAA opponents.
The 6’2″ 201 lbs. goalie signed a two-year entry level deal with Winnipeg Jets but spent most of his playing time with ECHL affiliates, playing only 15 AHL games with farm club St. John’s IceCaps.
He would next agree to a contract with Manitoba Moose but once again was shipped to the lower league Tulsa Oilers.
Easily that was enough time in the states trying to perfect his game and he left to join SaiPa for 2016/2017 but was moved early on.
The 27-year old seems to have found a good spot playing professionally back home and will likely not look further unless he has one outstanding season and the pay entices him elsewhere.
8th year Swiss-born right wing Christoph Bertschy(14) decides to not stick around to see if he gets a qualifying offer from trade team New Jersey Devils, where he spent 26 AHL games scoring 6 goals and 12 assists after picking up 8-9-17 in 45 games for third year club Iowa Wild combined numbers set new career high marks.
Originally a Minnesota Wild 6th round pick in the 2012 draft (#158 overall), he spent a few years in their system on a three-year entry level deal and appeared in NHL games in each campaign but failed to record a point.
The somewhat seemingly smaller than listed 5’10” 175 lbs. forward arrived with 153 games experience skating for SC Bern winning a 2013 NLA Champioship and 2015 Swiss Cup.
His best seasons on the stat sheet was his final year, 2014/2015 getting 14 goals and 16 assists in 44 contests.
He did his junior hockey there, so signing a three year deal with rival Lausanne HC to return seems like a good bet for the 24-year old.
Undrafted 5th year right wing Brant Harris(23) had such a successful first campaign overseas with EC Salzburg of EBEL that he’s decided to stay for another season.
Signed on three occasions with Florida Everblades, he posted outstanding numbers for the team scoring 67 goals and 93 assists through 175 ECHL games with a +54 rating.
The 6’1″ 205 lbs. forward was also loaned up to AHL teams in each of his three years doing best with Adirondack Flames in 2014/2015 grabbing 2 goals and 3 assists.
He actually signed an ato with Bridgeport Sound Tigers after his four year stint at University Of Connecticut that saw him twice post 20+ and 30+ point seasons.
With another strong run in Austria, there’s little doubt the 28-year old will be able to parlay it into an even better deal in a higher caliber of hockey overseas, if that’s what he decides.
11th year center Swedish-born center Jacob Josefson(40) decides it’s time to head back home signing a four-year deal to return to Djurgardens IF as he enters his first unrestricted free agency status after playing last season with Buffalo Sabres.
In 39 NHL games, limited because of injury, he scored only a couple goals and assists, which was his fifth full season in the big league after splitting his first three between draft club New Jersey Devils and affiliate Albany Devils.
The 6′ 196 lbs. forward was never a big scorer with 20 goals and 44 assists with a -21 rating in 315 games but may have been kept around in anticipation of a breakout.
He started his pro career with 2 SHL campaigns after playing all his junior hockey in his home country with similar results from what he was able to achieve in North America.
At still just 27-years old, it’s still very possible he’ll be able to step it up to a more elite level, where he’s most comfortable.
11th year defenseman Julien Brouillette(59) decides to call it a career after spending last season overseas with EC Salzburg and even won the 2018 EBEL Championship.
He leaves on a high note scoring a career best 22 assists and 34 points in 52 games.
The 31-year old suited up for no less than 15 different teams.
He also played 10 NHL games with Washington Capitals scoring a first (and only) big league goal plus an assist and had another appearance in the next season for Winnipeg Jets.
Not too terrible for a player who spent his first three campaigns in the ECHL and even started his fourth under contract with Greenville Road Warriors before being loaned up to the AHL, where he stuck with Cleveland Monsters for most of 2010/2011 and playoffs.
He received his first major league deal towards the end of his 2nd run with Hershey Bears but wasn’t retained so after the 2nd month of unrestricted free agency was picked up for Manitoba.
It was after that season he left on a first occasion and became captain for Karlskrona HK of the SHL.
In what was probably the most interesting of his career moves but probably to just get into game shape previous to signing with another tour of duty with St. John’s IceCaps, he first skated 8 games for LNAH‘s St. Georges-de-Beauce COOL-FM.
He even scored 3 goals and 4 assists, like he was a sharpshooter.
It’s a wrap for a guy who always seemed pretty tough to play against with an accountable +45 rating for his pro career.
7th year left wing Ian Watters(27) had a career year scoring 23 goals and 31 assists for 54 points in 55 EIHL games with Guilford Flames to a one-year contract extension to stay with the team for 2018/2019.
This takes his scoring way up from his bests in the ECHL skating mostly for Reading Royals and one season with Idaho Steelheads.
Not too shabby for a player who started his pro career in the SPHL with Augusta Riverhawks.
It will be interesting to see if the 26-year old decides to take his game elsewhere overseas if he’s able to keep pace for a 2nd campaign.
Florida Panthers‘ 1st round pick in the 2017 draft (#10 overall) right wing Owen Tippett(10) started 2017/2018 on the first year of his 3-year entry level deal playing 7 games getting a 1st NHL goal with a -6 rating before being sent back to Mississauga Steelheads.
The 6’2″ 203 lbs. power forward would put up a career high 39 assists and tie his 75 point mark set in the previous campaign.
He had 44 goals in the OHL through 2015/2016.
After finishing up his third year in juniors, he was reassigned to join affiliate Springfield Thunderbirds in the final stretch of a non-playoff team scoring a goal and an assist in 5 AHL games.
The 19-year old looks to be a shoe-in to make the big league roster for 2018/2019 and should stick with his big, aggressive style game.
Chicago Blackhawks‘ 5th year center Tyler Sikura(28) gets a one-year deal after excelling with affiliate Rockford IceHogs.
In his 1st full AHL season he scored 23 goals and 16 assists with a team high +24 rating and continues to help them win in the Calder Cup Playoffs.
The decently sized forward had been under a pair of ECHL contracts previously skating 115 games (30 goals, 52 assists) before securing a contract in the higher league.
At 26-year old he will become an unrestricted free agent at the end of next season but could very well be brought up to make his NHL debut and could make an impact.
His younger brother Dylan Sikura(95) is has also just been signed to enter the prospect system and may go directly to the big league as he did after college but could also join his brother for some games in the minors.
