Category: Minor League Deal

29Sep

Todd Skirving (17)

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Newfoundland Growlers‘ 3rd year fan favorite, hard-nosed center Todd Skirving(17) re-ups after taking last season off, as did the team, and heading up north, where he’s from for a coaching opportunity that took up a good chunk of his time away from playing.

Well, he’s back, serving as the club’s assistant captain and already has a first goal and 4 assists in 10 ECHL games.

It wouldn’t be surprising to see the 6’2″ 190 lbs. forward from Thunder Bay, ON earn a first loan up to the AHL in 2022.

The former 4-year RIT Tigers‘ has only managed 2 real breakout scoring sessions, both in his time with Sioux Falls Stampede, where he struck for a combined 40 goals and 30 assists in 114 USHL games.

Could be the 29-year old is arriving a bit late.

In 2021/2022, he blew away his career high totals with 21 goals and 20 assists in 60 games and a +10 rating to be offered a 4th straight contract to return.

More new career bests continue to follow the bearded one for new highs with 31 goals and 27 assists, 58 points and he is easily going to be wearing that Growlers‘ jersey for a 5th frame.

His longtime Canadian team goes belly-up for the final part of the current frame and he is forced to find a new team or close down the season a bit early.

We knew the 31-year old wouldn’t be on the blocks long, as Florida Everblades move in to offer him some ice time and he returns the favor with 1 assist and a +1 rating in his debut.

He would only play 4 games in the regular frame with 2 assists, but then in 22 playoff matchups had 2 goals and 2 assists, helping them to a 2nd straight Kelly Cup Championship.

For his 7th season, he will lace them up for Reading Royals in 2024/2025.

He would become team captain with his new club and takes another good season of play to another deal with Kalamazoo Wings for 2025/2026.

29Sep

Eelis Laaksonen (18)

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Curry College Colonels‘ Finnish-born, sophomore left wing Eelis Laaksonen(18) had a pair of tallies and an assist to help his team to a 5-1 semi-finals win to advance to the NCAA Division 3 CCC Finals.

The 6′ 185 lbs. forward has a college career tying 9 goals and best 15 assists for 24 points in 25 games this season.

At 22-years old, he should just continue to excel where he is playing hockey.

He finished up his senior year with a college best 14 goals and +19 rating, which he takes to possibly a slightly conservative deal with Evansville Thunderbirds, where he should score well in the FPHL to move up.

28Sep

Spencer Kersten (41)

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Bowling Green State University Falcons‘ graduate right wing Spencer Kersten(41) signs with Orlando Solar Bears upon finishing up and scores 2 goals and 4 assists in 10 ECHL games with a +5 rating, then another 6, 3 in 11 with a +4 in the playoffs to easily get him wanted to return for his rookie frame in 2024/2025.

The 5’10” 185 lbs. forward came over from 4 years of always playing 31 games as senior captain for Princeton University Tigers and scoring decently.

From Waterloo, ON, the 24-year old looks to have found more space to connect for points as a pro.

He explodes scoring with 24 goals and 28 assists in 53 games with a +20 rating to get himself a loan up to Belleville Senators, where we feel he will do well, once he starts to gel.

Also, loaned to Syracuse Crunch, where he scores a 1st AHL goal, he is signed for 2025/2026.

27Sep

T.J. Walsh (13)

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RPI Engineers‘ junior portal transfer from Northeastern University, left wing T.J. Walsh(13) has easily made the best hockey decision to switch up schools and join the ECAC.

The 5’9″ 165 lbs. forward has already blown the lid off his previous scoring, tying his college career high 2 goals and new best by lots 8 assists with a +2 rating in 15 games.

He only managed to light up scoring in his final year of juniors at Des Moines Buccaneers, getting 17 goals and 32 assists in 53 USHL games before hitting school.

The Shrewsbury, MA native did have one almost earth shattering session for Shattuck St. Mary’s 14U AAA, grabbing more than goal per game totals, 71 goals and 65 assists in 66 games.

Now that the switch is made and the season is off and running with the results he’s seeing, you got to think there’s a little smile on his face for 2021/2022.

In his senior year, he scored a new college best 7 goals, but his 15 assists as a 3rd year player stood as that category high.

For a graduate session, the undrafted 23-year old is heading to Sacred Heart University Pioneers and will compete some Atlantic Hockey for 2023/2024.

He scores a college best 13 goals and 13 assists for 26 points in his final frame and takes it to a 1st pro deal with Orlando Solar Bears, which should heed him good points in the ECHL.

In 2 games he has an assist.

For his rookie season, 2024/2025 he ultimately decides to sign with Iowa Heartlanders.

After a solid 43 point season in 66 games, he gets himself traded to his hometown team, Worcester Railers for 2025/2026.

26Sep

Riley Nash (20)

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12th year unrestricted free agent center Riley Nash(20) picks up a 1-year deal at the minimum with Winnipeg Jets for 2021/2022.

He was coming off a good money deal, but terrible fit with Columbus Blue Jackets that was eventually rolled to Toronto Maple Leafs for no games played.

A former Edmonton Oilers‘ 1st round pick in the 2007 draft (#21 overall), he’s never quick displayed the offensive finesse he did in 2 seasons with Thompson Blazer U18 AAA, then 1 season for Salmon Arms Silverbacks, scoring 38 goals and 46 assists in 55 BCHL games before heading to Cornell University Big Red.

The 6’2″ 188 lbs. forward is a veteran of 578 NHL games, 63 goals, 109 assists with his best outing coming in the 2nd year of his 2-year deal with Boston Bruins, and he somehow tipped in career highs 15 goals and 26 assists with a +16 rating to earn him that 3-year deal with the Ohio club.

At 32-years old, we got to think he’s pretty happy just getting a contract and who knows what he’s still capable of putting together.

For 2022/2023, he will return on a 2-year AHL deal to where it all started 13 years ago in 2010 with Charlotte Checkers, and will likely be one of the happiest guys in the locker room (and a true leader).

His 1st time back in forever and he lights it up big with an easy minor league career best 24 goals and 35 assists.

For 2023/2024, he makes maybe a little of a strategic decision, signing for 2-year 2-way the 2nd campaign with New York Rangers.

He plays 41 games in the minors, scoring well, then shows nice increases in the Calder Cup playoffs, but sits for all of the 2nd year of his deal and after 628 NHL and 312 in the A, at 36-years old enough is enough due to nagging concussion issues.

We see what awaits him next.

26Sep

Jordan Kaplan (47)

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3rd year right wing Jordan Kaplan(47) recently signed with Newfoundland Growlers after a somewhat inactive year in 2021/2022.

The 5’10” 170 lbs. forward already has a helper in a couple of appearances with his new club.

After graduating from University Of Vermont Catamounts, which followed up 3 years at Sacred Heart University Pioneers, he signed as a rookie with Adirondack Thunder, scoring 11 goals and 21 assists in 65 ECHL games, but also had a somewhat disastrous -32 rating.

From Bridgewater, NJ, we think the 25-year old will fit in nicely with his new club.

After 6 games with his new team, he gets released and claimed by Worcester Railers, but only lasts a couple of appearances before he’s on the move again, this time heading overseas to join Saale Bulls Halle for the remainder of 2023.

Germany3 hockey should come pretty easy for him to score big for his new club.

He does almost exactly as we saw would happen, scoring 4 goals and 6 assists in 11 games during the regular frame, then adding another 7 goals and 11 assists in 13 playoff matchups.

For 2023/2024, he will start his 3rd season in the league he’s mostly known with a 6th club, Indy Fuel and we think will find ways to put in points.

He actually played no games with who he initially signed and ended up bouncing around for a few games here and there, but lacking anything close to what he had as a rookie.

Playing maybe a bit of the waiting game, he decides to sign with Savannah Ghost Pirates to help make an impact with the new team and scores 1 in his 2nd game.

A couple months prior to 2024/2025, he finds himself traded after 14 goals and 14 assists in 51 games on a non-playoff team.

He returns to Worcester Railers, where he played 2 games and feel he will easily fit back into team mentality.

After 18 goals and 31 assists in an almost full run of 68 games, he re-signs to stay a Railers to see if he can help push this team further in 2025/2026, as they know they should be going.

As the new season approaches, he finds himself as part of a three team trade sending him to Wheeling Nailers, where we are sure he will be a big part of this team.

26Sep

Colton Young (26)

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Colgate University Raiders‘ junior left wing Colton Young(26) is having a college career year with new bests of 11 goals and 19 points in 20 NCAA Division 1 games.

The 6′ 174 lbs. forward put up consecutive 60+ point numbers in two years of junior hockey for Canmore Eagles, finishing with 157 in 176 AJHL games.

At 23-years old, the forthcoming unrestricted free agent will definitely be one to see where he heads to start pro hockey, if he does.

And he does, signing a deal with Greenville Swamp Rabbits, where he has 1 goal and 3 assists in 4 ECHL games, heading into the playoffs.

He grabs 1 assist in 5 playoff games and is an easy sign to welcome back as a Swamp Rabbits for his rookie season 2023/2024.

Through 39 games, he scores 6 goals and 10 assists, but is loaned up to Ontario Reign for 19 AHL games, where he pots 2 goals and 2 assists.

For 2024/2025, he is invited back to wear a Swamp Rabbits‘ jersey, which he would do, but late in the game is invited back to the Reign for the upcoming session.

Mostly reassigned, he is traded to Norfolk Admirals, where he does pretty well, but is an unrestricted free agent, heading into 2025/2026 and signs with Kalamazoo Wings.

26Sep

Trevor LeDonne (57)

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Robert Morris University Pioneers‘ senior defenseman Trevor LeDonne(57) signs a 1st pro deal, an ato with Allen Americans after putting up a college best 3 goals and 2 assists last season.

The 6’1″ 192 lbs. blue liner came over following 2 full seasons at University Of St. Thomas Tommies.

From Stony Break, ON, he did 2 BCHL junior seasons before college.

The 25-year old has 1 assist in 7 ECHL games.

He grabs 1 goal and 3 assists in 15 games, but looks to Wheeling Nailers for his 1st official contract for his rookie season, 2025/2026.

25Sep

Alex Tonge (88)

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Undrafted 3rd year left wing Alex Tonge(88) returns from a short, three game stint in Poland’s top league for GKS Tychy to Norfolk Admirals, where he spent the last 20 ECHL games of the 2019/2020 season, scoring a tidy 9 goals and 7 assists.

The former solid three-year scorer at Robert Morris University Colonials had sophomore and junior campaigns with 44 points, then 39 points in 39 Atlantic Hockey games as a senior.

He spent 4 years in the OJHL with Kingston Voyageurs growing his game and was discovered by his college after a strong 3rd session, getting 29 goals and 43 assists.

The 26-year old will definitely be a top scorer in the league but still has to become more accountable on ice to round out his overall play.

After an easy season best campaign in 2021/2022, scoring a way high 28 goals and 38 assists for 66 points in 66 games on a non-playoff team, he is set to leave for DEL2, signing a 1-year deal with Heilbronner Falken for 2022/2023.

He blows up tier 2 German scoring to the tune of 19 goals and 40 assists in 52 games, then another 8 points in the playoffs.

Scoring would continue with his new league team EV Landshut, but he decides to look elsewhere and signs with Sweden’s tier 2 HockeyAllsvenskan and does alright.

For 2024/2025, he will head to the EIHL and signs with Dundee Stars, where we think he will become a very popular player.

The injury bug hits him and he is only able to skate 10 games last season, which was almost still equal to a point-per-game outcome.

He returns “home” for 2025/2026 and signs with Orlando Solar Bears.

25Sep

Kyle McClellan (33)

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University Of Wisconsin Badgers‘ junior goaltender Kyle McClellan(33) transfers in for 2022/2023 after 2 seasons at Mercyhurst University Lakers.

The 6’1″ 185 lbs. net minder had almost identical NAHL, then USHL seasons before committing to school.

From Manchester, MO, the 23-year old will definitely help his new Big Ten team win games.

In his 2nd season at his new school, he was able to show very impressive marks with a 1.94 GAA and .931 SV% that he took to a 1st deal with Iowa Wild, but was reassigned to Iowa Heartlanders.

He did ok, but is moving onto another ECHL team for 2025/2026, Cincinnati Cyclones.