AHL Players Move off to Europe

Eurohockey.com

As the month of August kicks in, hockey in North America goes into their hibernation mode before training camp kicks off in September. This  season as the current NHL-NHLPLA CBA agreement between the owners and players expires, the possibility of a lockout looms over the horizon.

In Europe, training camps begin this month and the signing period for North American players comes to an end. It was another bumper off season for Europeans teams on the AHL with 69 players signed and all 30 teams losing at least one player to Europe.

The biggest prize was AHL Butterfield trophy playoff MVP Alexandre Picard of the Calder Cup champion Norfolk Admirals heading to Geneva to play with HC Geneve-Servette in the Swiss National A League. The other gem was AHL goal scoring whiz over the last seven years Alexandre Giroux who played a very sub-par in Springfield last year, after scoring 60 goals in Hershey two years ago signing in the KHL with Dynamo Riga in hockey mad Latvia.

Portland Pirates lost seven players, the most in the league, starting with the first AHL player to sign with a European team this off season in Ryan Duncan who returns to EC Salzburg in Austria who suffered a horrific cut to his face late in the season against the Connecticut Whale in Hartford requiring more than 50 stitches.

The last Pirate to sign last week was Ryan Hollweg, a physical player heads to the Czech Republic and HC Plzen.

The Rochester Americans lost six players including forward Paul Szczechura and goaltender Drew MacIntyre who will both join the new KHL team in Prague the Czech Republic, HC Lev. They won’t be alone with three other AHL’ers Nathan Oystrick (Chicago), Michal Repik (San Antonio) and defenseman Alexandre R. Picard (Wilkes Barre) will be skating alongside them.

The Binghamton Senators lost four players including high scoring forward Corey Locke hampered by injuries last year to TPS Turku (Finland) and rugged rearguard Tim Conboy to ERC Ingolstadt of the German Elite League (DEL).

The Connecticut Whale lost four players in Andreas Thuresson (Brynas IF Sweden), Norwegian Mats Zuccarello heads to Russia and the KHL (Metallurg Magnitogorsk), he will see be seeing IN Russia his former teammate defenseman Pavel Valentenko (Avangard Omsk) and Jordan Owens makes his first trip overseas (SonderyskE).

Two other teams lost 4 players in the St. John’s Ice Caps and the Grand Rapids Griffins. The Griffins lost the highly sought after free agent four years ago in forward Fabian Brunnstrom who returns to his native Sweden to play with Frolunda.

Several other quality AHL players have their passports ready for new destinations such as Danny Richmond who split last season with Lake Erie and Hershey going to Pelicans Lahti in the Finnish Elite League and Greg Mauldin of Lake Erie to HC Fribourg-Gotteron in the Swiss National A League.

Goaltenders are always in need, saw David Aebischer of the St. John’s Ice Caps heading back to his native Switzerland to play for SC Rapperswill-Jona in the National A League, Andrew Raycroft who played for the Texas Stars and some with the Dallas Stars is off to the Italian A-League and HC Milano-Rossoblu and Mike Murphy Charlotte heads to Spartak Moscow (Russia-KHL).

Surprises included defenseman Arturs Kulda of St. John’s who seemed to be on the rise in the Winnipeg Jets organization splitting to Russia KHL and Sibir Novosibirsk, Angelo Esposito who was once considered a top 5 NHL draft choice who has had no luck his first several years as a professional and split time with the San Antonio Rampage and the Chicago Wolves and a made a brief ECHL stint with the Cincinnati Cyclones (ECHL) departs for Pelicans Lahti in Finland.

Ten teams (including Norfolk’s Alexandre Picard) lost one player in Adirondack veteran goalie Jason Bacashihua went to Germany DEL (EHC Straubing), Chicago Wolves lost Sebastian Erixon to Timra IK Swedish Elite League (SEL). Rockford lost defenseman Brian Fahey (Vityaz Chekhov Russia-KHL), Hershey’s Jacob Micflikier went to EHC Biel/Bienne of the Swiss A League, from the Manchester Monarchs speedy forward Justin Azeevedo heads to Finland Lukko Rauma, Milwaukee’s Ryan Thang (Augsburger Germany-DEL), Peoria Rivermen Shaun Heska who played some in Binghamton to Assat Pori (Finland-FEL), Toronto Marlies Drew Paris is off to Dusseldorfer EG in the German DEL and the Worcester Sharks Ryan Del Monte heads to (Rosenheim Germany Division 2).

 

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