It may be August, but hockey transactions are still ongoing. While the major names on the NHL free agent market appear to still be in a holding pattern, AHL teams have begun to fill out their rosters with minor leagues deals. The result has been a recent influx of minor news, both of AHL signings and those with less luck finding a contract in North America signing overseas. Keep track of these moves today right here:
- The EBEL has already made their presence felt this summer more so than ever before with the signings of NHL veterans like Matt Fraser, Ben Walter, and Rob Flick, and now the small Austrian-based league is back at it again. Defenseman Mat Clark has signed on with HC Bolzano for the coming season, the team announced yesterday. Clark, a veteran of nine NHL games with the Anaheim Ducks and over 400 AHL games since turning pro in 2010, is a big addition for the Foxes. Like most North American signings in the EBEL, Clark should step in and compete right away for the title of best player on the team. The big blue liner, a second-round draft pick of the Ducks in 2009, is a dominating stay-at-home threat, but has also contributed some modest offense in the AHL as well.
- If Clark had been able to find a good fit in the AHL for the 2017-18 season, one would think he would have jumped on it. Instead, he decided to take a deal overseas. Dalton Thrower, another defenseman, has chosen a different path. Thrower has signed with Allen Americans of the ECHL for the upcoming campaign. It’s quite the change in direction for Thrower’s career path, as he was not tendered a qualifying offer by the Montreal Canadiens this off-season and goes from an NHL contract to an ECHL contract. A second-round pick of the Habs just five years ago, Thrower has not come close to reaching his lofty expectations, having played almost exclusively in the ECHL since turning pro. However, softening the blow of Thrower losing his NHL connection is a familiar face joining him in Allen. The Americans announced that they have signed both he and his younger brother, Josh Thrower, who aged out of the WHL after last season. The pair are set to dominate the Allen blue line in 2017-18.
- Nolan Zajac is having the opposite fortunes of Thrower, as he’ll jump up a level ahead of next season. The younger brother of New Jersey Devils’ mainstay Travis Zajac, the 25-year-old defenseman has signed an AHL deal with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. Zajac had signed with the ECHL’s Toledo Walleye out of college last off-season, but after 54 points in 61 games and strong performances on loan to three different AHL teams, he has earned a full-time role at the next level. The former University of Denver standout is a strong skater who has left his mark on the score sheet wherever he has played, Zajac will look to continue to climb through the ranks of pro hockey next season. With a big year in Lehigh Valley, the Philadelphia Flyers’ affiliate, Zajac may just end up with an NHL contract next summer and a possible divisional sibling rivalry down the road.
- The AHL’s Ontario Reign, the affiliate to the Los Angeles Kings, have re-signed two-way forward Sam Herr to a one-year extension. The former Notre Dame winger made his pro debut in 2016-17 with 14 points in 61 regular season games with the Reign and looked his best during the team’s short playoff run. The 24-year-old may not have NHL chops, but is a smart player and hard worker who will surely be able to help Ontario out in the coming season.
More to come…