Undrafted rookie defenseman Jack St. Ivany(3) signs a 2-year NHL entry level deal with Pittsburgh Penguins.
The 6’3″ 195 lbs. blue liner had two solid seasons at Boston College Eagles on transfer from Yale University Bulldogs and put up a college career high 20 assists and 24 points as a senior.
Not exactly known for recording points, he did post 30 assists in his 2nd USHL season for Sioux Falls Stampede.
Originally a Philadelphia Flyers‘ 4th round pick in the 2018 draft (#112 overall), the 23-year old from Manhattan Beach, CA went unsigned.
He should fit right in at the AHL level with affiliate Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and compete for a spot with the big club.
Through 63 games, he looks to be gaining comfort with 8 assists to his credit and earns a look from the top, skates 20 shifts for 12:28 ice time with 1 block shot and 1 hit dished in a 4-2 Penguins‘ loss.
He stays up for 14 games, recording 1 assist with a 0 rating, and then goes on to record 4 goals and 11 assists in 54 games with a +17 rating.
They are liking what they see and offer him a 3-year deal to stick around Pittsburgh with the 3rd year being on a 1-way deal at $750K.
16th year left wing Ryan Stoa(13) re-signs with Nurnberg Ice Tigers for a 4th season, where 3 times he has scored 10+ goals in a season.
The one-time University Of Minnesota Golden Gophers‘ senior captain, 40+ point player has done quite well overseas with 6 KHL campaigns and 3 in the SHL before heading to Germany.
Originally a Colorado Avalanche 2nd round pick in the 2005 draft (#34 overall), he has skated 40 NHL games, scoring 4 goals and 3 assists, but has 290 AHL games of experience.
The 6’3″ 223 lbs. from Bloomington, MN did 2 junior seasons with the USNTDP.
At 37-years old, he’s still having fun out there to sign.
12th year, small 5’9″ 161 lbs. defenseman Chay Genoway(39) maybe wants to take the edge off playing for big squads in the KHL or SHL, as he’s been doing for the past 8 seasons.
For 2022/2023, he has signed with EC Salzburg of ICEHL and will definitely find some room to score big in Austria’s top hockey league.
In fact, in his 1st 2 games, the former University Of North Dakota Fighting Hawks already has a goal and an assist.
Undrafted, he signed an entry level deal with Minnesota Wild, yet only skated 1 NHL game at the end of his rookie season, coming away with an assist.
The 35-year old from Morden, MB is likely still just having too much fun playing the game to quit.
He posts 10 goals and 17 assists in 45 games, then adds another 8 points in 16 playoff matchups en route to the 2023 ICEHL Championship to earn himself another year on the now 36-year old’s contract.
At 37-years of age, he continues to contribute for a 2nd league title in a row and he is to be kept on in a Red Bulls‘ uniform for a 3rd straight year, 2024/2025 (and another championship).
University Of Denver Pioneers‘ freshman center Massimo Rizzo(13) is tied for 3rd in NCAA Division 1 scoring at 24 points (10 goals, 14 assists).
He is a Carolina Hurricanes‘ 7th round pick in the 2019 draft (#216 overall) and looking to prove them right with the deep pick.
The 5’10” 174 lbs. forward was a solid performer through 3 years of BCHL with a couple of teams (43 goals and 80 assists in 132 games) and won a 2017 championship with Penticton Vees, the year he arrived from youth hockey.
This is definitely the style player from Burnaby, BC that can break through and find space in the NHL.
After another 40+ points frame, the now junior decides to leave a year on the table and signs a 2-year NHL entry level deal with Philadelphia Flyers, who picked up his playing rights in a trade.
University Of Maine Black Bears‘ Swedish-born, senior net minder Victor Ostman(35) gets himself a nice 2-year NHL entry level contract from Seattle Kracken.
The big 6’4″ 205 lbs. goalie had his best college season record last year with a 13-6-1 mark, but his junior stats at 2.21 GAA and .918 SV% in 33 starts were highs.
He came over for 1 USHL season with Chicago Steel.
The 23-year old reported to affiliate Coachella Valley Firebirds, but has yet to appear in the playoffs.
Dartmouth College Big Green sophomore goaltender Cooper Black(31) puts up some college career best numbers with a 13-8-8 record with a 2.58 GAA and .910 SV%, including 2 shutouts.
The absolute giant 6’8″ 240 lbs. undrafted backstop signs a 2-year entry level contract with Florida Panthers, starting next season, but will join the team on a pto for the playoffs.
From Alpena, MI, he did 2 NAHL campaigns with almost identical stats, but played on a better team to start.
The 22-year old was complete shutdown as a senior USHS-MI.
He reports to affiliate Charlotte Checkers on a pto to start.
12th year center Nick Shore(23) swaps close to 2 years, scoring good numbers with HV71 for 1 at Linkoping HC 2024/2025.
The 3rd round Los Angeles Kings‘ draft pick in the 2011 draft (#82 overall)
He initially left North American hockey after his 3rd straight year in the NHL and left for 1 year in the KHL.
Wooed back for another spin in the biggest league, taking his total up to 299 games, he didn’t really put up the numbers and next found the net on multiple occasions in Slovakia Extraliga, but swapped that quickly for hockey in Switzerland, signing with EV Zug.
The 6’1″ 198 lbs. forward would help his team win the 2021 NL Championship.
He returned to Russia, but the former 3-year University Of Denver Pioneers went back before switching to Sweden, where he stays.
The 31-year old from Denver, CO has made a neat little journey out of playing pro hockey for himself.
Undrafted 4th year center Ryan Schmelzer(26) signs a new 1-year AHL deal with Utica Comets for 2021/2022 after spending the last three seasons skating for Binghamton Devils.
In 133 games he wracked up 23 goals and 32 assists.
The former four-year Canisius College Golden Griffiths standout got 40 goals and 66 assists in 143 NCAA Atlantic Hockey games with a quite massive +43.
Almost oddly, the Buffalo, NY native skated all his junior hockey at home for Buffalo Jr. Sabres in the Canadian OJHL and was a point per game player.
The 6’2″ 187 lbs. forward should be right at home playing his style for a new club, seeing as his team from New York went belly up after 2020/2021.
In 2021/2022, he becomes team captain and posts a new career best 18 goals and 32 points with a +6 rating, then comes away with another 2 points in 5 playoff games gets him a new deal to stay and keep grabbing points.
The word determination is definitely in his vocabulary, as he records a career high 29 assists and 35 points in his 2nd frame with the team and then goes on last season to score another 18 goals, adds new best 34 assists and 52 points with a +14 rating to earn himself a 2-year NHL deal with parent club, New Jersey Devils.
Ohio State University Buckeyes‘ junior center Cam Thiesing(15) signs a 2-year 2-way NHL contract with NY Islanders and an undrafted, unrestricted free agent, leaving a year of school on the table.
He had 15 goals as a sophomore and 17 assists in his freshman year, but also scored well with 9 goals and 7 assists in 31 games last season.
The 6′ 183 lbs. forward did 3 years junior hockey and in his 2nd USHL with Green Bay Gamblers was very close to a point-per-game scorer.
From Franklin, TN, they obviously see something in the 23-year olds game they want now.
Edmonton Oilers‘ 12th year center Brad Malone(17) gets re-upped on a new 2-year deal worth some tidy sums regardless of where he plays.
He has served as captain of affiliate Bakersfield Condors for the past couple seasons and looks to return for that role in 2022/2023.
The 6’2″ 217 lbs. forward was actually playing under an AHL deal last season, when he was signed initially to come aboard.
He almost quietly has 207 NHL games to his credit, even appearing in 8 games last season with a goal and an assist, and 462 in the minors.
At 33-years old, the former University Of North Dakota Fighting Hawks‘ graduate, Miramichi, NB native must have a huge smile on his face.
After a 4th season of being team captain, he decides his ice time is up and announces his retirement, but you can bet he won’t be traveling too far away from the game.
