Ben Birnell | Observer-Dispatch Zack MacEwen has carved a interesting path early into his pro hockey career. MacEwen, who has had a notable rise among the prospects ranks in the Vancouver Canucks organization, got a piece of advice from Utica Comets head coach Trent Cull he said has stuck with him during his three pro
American Hockey League
The St. Louis Blues have re-signed forward Nolan Stevens to a one-year, two-way contract. Stevens, 24, tallied nine goals and 22 assists for 31 points in 50 games with the AHL’s San Antonio Rampage in 2019-20. A fifth-round choice by the Blues in the 2016 NHL Draft, Stevens has played 109 games in the AHL
The Los Angeles Kings have re-signed forwards Mikey Eyssimont and Matt Luff to one-year contracts. Eyssimont, 24, established career highs with 12 goals, 16 assists and 28 points in 56 games with the AHL’s Ontario Reign last season, tied for second on the team in scoring. A fifth-round pick by the Kings in the 2016
The New York Islanders announced today that defenseman Sebastian Aho has agreed to terms on a two-year contract. Aho, 24, has been named to the AHL All-Star Classic in each of his first three seasons with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, participating in the 2019 and 2020 events after missing the 2018 event due to NHL
Thirty-one National Hockey League teams are preparing to take part in this week’s 2020 NHL Draft, and their top affiliates are ready and waiting for the next wave of young American Hockey League stars to begin their professional careers. In 2019-20, a total of 223 former first- and second-round draft picks played in the American
The Columbus Blue Jackets announced that forward Kole Sherwood has accepted the club’s qualifying offer for a one-year, two-way contract. Sherwood, 23, skated in 43 games with the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters last season, registering 10 goals and three assists for 13 points. He also appeared in three NHL games with the Blue Jackets. As a
The Washington Capitals have re-signed defenseman Lucas Johansen to a one-year, two-way contract. Johansen, 22, missed most of the 2019-20 season due to injury. In nine games with the AHL’s Hershey Bears, he notched two assists. In three pro seasons, Johansen has recorded nine goals and 34 assists for 43 points in 128 AHL games,
The Montreal Canadiens have agreed to terms with forward Jake Lucchini on a one-year, two-way contract. Lucchini, 25, tallied 11 goals and nine assists for 20 points in 61 AHL games between the Laval Rocket and the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins as a rookie in 2019-20. The product of Michigan Tech made his pro debut with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton
The Iowa Wild have announced the hiring of Richard Bachman as goaltending coach. Bachman, 33, concluded an 11-year playing career in 2019-20, appearing in three games with the AHL’s Utica Comets as well as three games for Oskarshamn IK in the Swedish Hockey League. Bachman played in 264 regular-season games over his AHL career with
The Buffalo Sabres announced today that the team has re-signed forward Andrew Oglevie to a two-year, two-way contract. Oglevie, 25, tied for the Rochester Americans team lead with 15 goals in 2019-20 and added 14 assists for 29 points in 55 games. A native of Fullerton, Calif., Oglevie has appeared in 83 games with Rochester
The Detroit Red Wings have re-signed center Dominic Turgeon to a one-year contract. Turgeon, 24, appeared in all 63 games for the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins in 2019-20, tallying 10 goals and 13 assists for 23 points. In four seasons with Grand Rapids, Turgeon has has tallied 36 goals and 57 assists for 93 points
The New Jersey Devils have re-signed forwards Brett Seney and Ben Street and defenseman Josh Jacobs to one-year, two-way contracts. Seney skated in 61 games for the AHL’s Binghamton Devils in 2019-20, leading the club with 19 goals and 44 points. He also appeared in two NHL games with New Jersey. Seney enters his third
The Montreal Canadiens have re-signed goaltender Michael McNiven to a one-year contract. McNiven, 23, enters his fourth season in the Canadiens organization in 2020-21 after originally signing an entry-level contract on Sept. 24, 2015. McNiven was 3-0-0 with a 2.33 goals-against average and a .919 save percentage in three appearances with the AHL’s Laval Rocket
Center Brandon Pirri was 23 years old when the Blackhawks traded him to the Florida Panthers for two draft picks. Now, he’s 29 and he and his wife Elyse are expecting their second child in December. “I think last time around I was a kid, this time I (almost) have two kids,” Pirri said. “A lot’s
Dylan Sikura woke up Monday morning with plans to play golf with a few junior hockey buddies in his hometown outside of Toronto. Before he teed off, he received the news that he’d been traded from the Chicago Blackhawks to the Vegas Golden Knights in exchange for Brandon Pirri. Sikura, 25, joins the Golden Knights
An affiliation change during a global pandemic wasn’t part of the vision, but Geordie Kinnear still managed to end up in the right place. “I always wanted to be the head coach of the Charlotte Checkers,” said Kinnear, who hopes to start that job in the near future. “I have a ton of respect for
The Tampa Bay Lightning captured the Stanley Cup on Monday night with a 2-0 victory over the Dallas Stars to win the NHL’s championship series, four games to two. Brayden Point and Blake Coleman scored for the Lightning in Game 6, and Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 22 shots to record his first career playoff shutout. Tampa
Before the Lightning’s current core went on a handful of deep playoff runs in the NHL, they cut their teeth in a waterfront city in southeastern Virginia. It was in 2011-12 when coach Jon Cooper led an AHL Norfolk Admirals group on a historic run. Ondrej Palat, Tyler Johnson and Alex Killorn, all key contributors