12th year left wing Brandon DeFazio(26) retires after a successful 3rd DEL season, 1st for Schwenninger Wild Wings and will become an amateur scout in the organization he signed his 1st pro contract with after 4 years at Clarkson University Golden Knights, Pittsburgh Penguins.
He signed his 1st contract with affiliate Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, but would go on to sign NHL deals for the next 4 frames before inking with Texas Stars for his best AHL season, scoring 22 goals and 25 assists.
The 6’2″ 198 lbs. forward would transition over to a pair of KHL campaigns with Kunlun Red Star before heading 1st to Czechia Extraliga, but ultimately Germany.
An Oakville, ON native, the 34-year old will be perfect in his new role.
Michigan Tech University Huskies‘ graduate defenseman Ryan O’Connell(24) signs a 1st pro deal in France3 with Toulouse Blagnac for 2023/2024.
The 6’2″ 178 lbs. blue liner was originally a Toronto Maple Leafts‘ 7th round pick in the 2017 draft (#203 overall) coming off his 2nd 27 assist campaign at St. Andrew’s College.
He did 1 year of BCHL juniors with Penticton Vees.
His best college season was likely as a senior for Ohio State University Buckeyes, when he had 10 assists and a +12 rating.
The 24-year old from Gloucester, ON is likely to do quite well where he is going as a rookie.
14th year left wing Shawn Weller(63) decided to take 2020/2021 off after returning from a successful 7 season career in Germany’s DEL2 with a handful of teams, including 4 for Bietighiem Steelers, scoring a mammoth 346 points (124 goals, 222 assists) in 298 games with a full on +50 rating and even managed to capture a 2018 Championship in his third campaign.
He returns to sign a 1-year deal with Kansas City Mavericks and has a goal and 3 assists in 12 ECHL games.
The former 3-year Clarkson University Golden Knights‘ forward was originally an Ottawa Senators‘ 3rd round pick in the 2004 draft (#77 overall) and spent a couple of seasons in their system with affiliate Binghamton Senators before being dished to Anaheim Ducks, but not being given a qualifying offer to stay.
From there, the solid 6’2″ 218 lbs. winger bounced around the minors from there and made it to the ECHL Kelly Cup Finals with Stockton Thunder before hitting the road for overseas.
At 35-years old, his scoring says things aren’t quite finished.
He’s been happy being back home with his Glens Falls, NY team, Adirondack Thunder and even popped for a nice 14 goals and 13 assists last season.
16 seasons is plenty enough playing time for the now 37-year old, who will return for 1 more frame and then call it a day.
5th year defenseman Myles McGurty(16) signs for 2023/2024 with Nottingham Panthers of the EIHL.
He had an ECHL best 22 assists and 24 points last season with 2nd year team Worcester Railers.
The 6’1″ 201 lbs. blue liner from Weehawken, NJ started playing junior hockey up north in the QMJHL for a few different teams before heading to Dalhousie University Tigers for 5 CIS/USports‘ sessions.
He signed his 1st deal out of school to play in Erste Liga for Fehervari Titanok, but last only 5 games (2 assists) before he returned to deals that would eventually settle with Rapid City Rush.
We definitely see the 29-year old has worked his way to do very well in this English hockey league.
Nashville Predators‘ 5th round pick in the 2017 draft (#154 overall) Czech Republic-born goaltender Tomas Vomacka(33) gets signed to a two-year entry level deal after completing his college studies at University Of Connecticut Huskies in three seasons.
He’s appeared in 71 NCAA Hockey East games posting a 2.87 GAA and .903 SV%.
The fairly large 6’3″ 190 lbs. net minder started most of his playing time back home but came over for a pair of campaigns, first in the NAHL with Corpus Christi Ice Rays, where he made his college commitment, then a run in the USHL for Lincoln Stars.
His contract kicks in immediately but considering the parent club doesn’t have an affiliate, it’s unsure where he’ll start his pro career.
He would mostly be reassigned to a pair of ECHL clubs for his contract period, but does not get a qualifying offer to stick.
The Trutnov native will head home to continue his pro career, maybe conservatively signing a 1-year deal with HC Dynamo Pardubice of Czechia2 for 2023/2024.
10th year center Corban Knight(9) signs to stay on for a 3rd season with Avangard Omsk Hawks.
Originally a Florida Panthers‘ 5th round pick in the 2008 draft (#135 overall), he eventually signed an entry level deal with Calgary Flames after completing 4 successful years at University Of North Dakota Fighting Hawks.
He would next sign with the team that selected him and play a career high 20 NHL games, scoring 2 goals and 5 assists.
For the 6’2″ 195 lbs. forward final big league contract, he agreed to terms with Philadelphia Flyers and appeared in 23 games before deciding to next leave for the KHL.
The 32-year old from Oliver, BC put up a career best 30 assists and 48 points last season and raised the 2021 Gagarin Cup with his current club and also was credited with the most points in a session by a foreigner.
He didn’t match his totals from the previous campaign, but 15 goals and 19 assists through 58 games with a +14 rating, then adding another 10 points (5-5) in 14 playoff matchups, and easily he would be in good standing.
For 2023/2024, he decides to embark on something different and signs for 1-year with SC Bern of NL.
He should do really well in Switzerland’s top hockey.
15th year goaltender Cory Schneider(35) earns a 2nd straight contract with New York Islanders to continue to help out the younger net minders in the system and also possibly earn some time in the cage with the big club.
Originally a Vancouver Canucks‘ 1st round pick in the 2004 draft (#26 overall), he definitely had 6 strong seasons with the team and once posted both league best GAA and most shutouts.
The 6’3″ 201 lbs. net minder decided to go exploring for a lucrative deal and landed on a handsome 7-year deal with New Jersey Devils, where once again, he basically put up stellar numbers, but ended as the team began shifting gears and was put on unqualified waivers to buy out the remaining two years of the deal.
And that’s where the 35-year old, former 3-year Boston College Eagles‘ standout goalie has landed himself on a pair of one year deals at the league minimum, but that’s hardly the cause at this point.
He re-ups for a 3rd season on the Isle.
410 NHL games and 224 AHL is quite enough to wrap it up for the decade and a half net minder, who leaves the game at 37-years old with some impressive marks.
It’s almost silly to say, it will be interesting to see where he pops up next.
14th year defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk(12) signs a 1-year deal worth just $1.05M with Boston Bruins as an unrestricted free agent, which brings him back “home” to where he played his 3 years of college hockey at Boston University Terriers.
The 6′ 207 lbs. blue liner was originally a Colorado Avalanche 1st round pick in 2017 (#14 overall), but played only half a season there before being traded to St. Louis Blues.
He stayed with them for 7 campaigns scoring 10+ goals 3 times, 30+ assists 5 and 40+ points on 5 occasions.
The 34-year old from New Rochelle, NY did 2 years at the USNTDP before college and playing on his new team could get him back into the 20+ point range, as he did 4 of the last 5 sessions.
Salve Regina University Seahawks‘ graduate right wing John McLean(22) played his 1st pro hockey for Olofstroms IK of Division3 last season, running up scoring totals 19 goals and 17 assists in 26 games, then added another 8 (4-4) in 6 through the playoffs.
He ran up good, almost point-per-game totals sophomore through graduate seasons.
The fairly big 6’2″ 200 lbs. forward from North Andover, MA played his high school hockey at Malden Catholic, then maybe conservatively went on to play of Islanders HC Premier team and won a USPHL Premier Championship.
At 27-years old already, he switches things up to advance to a bit of a higher level in BeNeLiga, where he signs for 2023/2024 with EG Diez Limburg Rockets.
We think he will have great success here too and hopefully look for some pro hockey that competes at the level he does.
2nd year center Alex Cohen(10) had a strange 1st year skating pro, playing for 3 different SPHL teams and exiting for 3 games in Czechia3 before returning.
Atlanta Gladiators see something in the 6′ 192 lbs. forward and sign him to a tryout agreement for 2023/2024.
He played 3 years of NAHL junior hockey for Northeast Generals, scoring a best 16 goals and 15 assists in his 3rd frame.
The Newton, MA native was with Union College Bobcats for 3 seasons, but played only 15 games total as one ECAC season was scrapped due to COVID.
