Howlings

By: Andy Zilch, Bloomington Bison Bloomington, Ill.  - Bloomington Bison General Manager and Head Coach, Phillip Barski, announced today the signings of forward Brett Budgell and defenseman Jake Murray to ECHL standard player contracts. Budgell, 23, played a majority of last season with the Iowa Heartlanders scoring 14 goals and 16 assists (30 points) in 44 games. He also skated in 19 AHL games with the Iowa Wild collecting one assist. The 6-foot, 187-pound forward spent the entire 2022-23 season with the Newfoundland Growlers scoring 16 goals and 36 assists (52 points) with a +14 rating in 72 games. He ranked third on the team in assists and fourth in points. The St. John’s, Newfoundland native played in 270 career QMJHL games with the Charlottetown Islanders registering 107 goals and 134 assists (241 points) with a +79 rating and 199 penalty minutes. He served as team captain for his last two seasons and an alternate for two seasons prior to that. Murray, 22, skated in 26 games l...

By: Alex Thomas, Hartford Wolf Pack HARTFORD, CT – New York Rangers President and General Manager Chris Drury announced today that the club has assigned goaltender Talyn Boyko to the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack. The Wolf Pack’s 2024 training camp begins on Sunday, Sept. 29. Boyko, 21, appeared in 26 games as a rookie with the ECHL’s Cincinnati Cyclones in 2023-24. He posted a record of 13-9-1 with an .888 save percentage and 3.42 goals against average. The native of Drumheller, AB, made his AHL debut in Game 1 of the 2024 Atlantic Division Finals for the Wolf Pack, playing 8:59 in relief against the Hershey Bears. Before turning pro, Boyko appeared in 142 WHL games, posting a 56-67-9 record with a .899 save percentage, 3.55 goals against average, and six shutouts with the Kelowna Rockets and Tri-City Americans. Boyko was selected in the fourth round, 112th overall, by the Rangers in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft. Hartford Wolf Pack transactions during the 2024-25 season are presented by Veriz...

 By: Andy Zilch, Bloomington Bison Bloomington, Ill.  - Bloomington Bison General Manager and Head Coach, Phillip Barski, announced today the team has acquired forwards Jonny Evans and Jackson Leppard from the South Carolina Stingrays for future considerations. In a separate transaction, the team has also acquired the rights to defenseman Bryce Montgomery from the Stingrays for future considerations.   Evans, 27, played the previous three seasons with the Stingrays amassing 34 goals and 54 assists (88 points) in 105 career ECHL games. His 45 points last season ranked fourth on the team. The Delta, British Columbia native played four seasons at the University of Connecticut totaling 37 goals and 42 assists (79 points) in 106 collegiate games. Evans sizes in at 5-foot-9, 170 pounds. Leppard, 24, dressed in 57 games for the Stingrays last season potting 10 goals and 18 assists (28 points). He finished third on the team with 110 penalty minutes. The North Vancouver, British C...

 By: Andy Zilch, Bloomington Bison Bloomington, Ill.  - Bloomington Bison General Manager and Head Coach, Phillip Barski, announced today the team has acquired forwards Jonny Evans and Jackson Leppard from the South Carolina Stingrays for future considerations. In a separate transaction, the team has also acquired the rights to defenseman Bryce Montgomery from the Stingrays for future considerations.   Evans, 27, played the previous three seasons with the Stingrays amassing 34 goals and 54 assists (88 points) in 105 career ECHL games. His 45 points last season ranked fourth on the team. The Delta, British Columbia native played four seasons at the University of Connecticut totaling 37 goals and 42 assists (79 points) in 106 collegiate games. Evans sizes in at 5-foot-9, 170 pounds. Leppard, 24, dressed in 57 games for the Stingrays last season potting 10 goals and 18 assists (28 points). He finished third on the team with 110 penalty minutes. The North Vancouver, British C...

By: Andy Zilch, Bloomington Bison Bloomington, Ill. - Bloomington Bison General Manager and Head Coach Phillip Barski announced today the signings of forward Connor Lockhart and defenseman Wyatt McLeod to ECHL standard player contracts.   Lockhart, 21, scored 27 goals and 32 assists (59 points) with a +31 rating in 52 OHL games last season between the Peterborough Petes and the Oshawa Generals. In addition, he totaled nine goals and nine assists with 22 penalty minutes in 21 postseason games with the Generals. His 18 postseason points were fourth most on the team. During the 2022-23 season, the Kanata, Ontario native tallied 29 goals and 50 assists, ranking second on the team with 79 points in 66 games with the Petes. En route to an OHL championship, Lockhart posted seven goals and nine assists (16 points) in 23 postseason games. The 5-foot-9, 164-pound forward totaled 88 goals and 125 assists (213 points) in 239 career OHL games. Lockhart was a sixth-round selection (178th o...

Second-year defenseman led Swamp Rabbits blue-liners with 27 points last season By: Mark Binettti, Greenville Swamp Rabbits GREENVILLE, S.C. – The Greenville Swamp Rabbits, proud ECHL affiliate of the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings, announced today that Joe Leahy, last season’s leading-scoring defenseman, has re-signed with the Swamp Rabbits for the 2024-25 ECHL Season. Leahy is the seventh defenseman announced to the roster, joining Jacob Modry, Max Coyle, Bobby Russell, Joshua Karlsson, Miles Gendron, and Jake Flynn on the blue line. He is the nineteenth player overall announced to the team for this upcoming season. Leahy returns to the Swamp Rabbits for his second full season with the team. The 6’4”, 195-pound defenseman led all Swamp Rabbits blue-liners with 27 points (9g-18ast) and +18 rating in 69 games, and appeared once in the 2024 Kelly Cup Playoffs. “My wife and I love Greenville. We had such a great time last year, so between the city, the relationships we’ve built, and some unfini...

By: Alex Thomas, Hartford Wolf Pack HARTFORD, CT – The Hartford Wolf Pack may have been dormant on the ice during the summer, but the organization continued strengthening its connection with the Greater Hartford Community throughout the offseason. The organization made 25 visits to local summer camps to host street hockey clinics. The camps, attended by Wolf Pack front office personnel, were 60-to-90-minute sessions where campers learned the basics of the sport. In addition to learning how to pass, shoot, stick handle, and more, campers got to take part in games. Among stops on this year’s street hockey tour were Camp Courant, YMCA Camp Pyquag in Wethersfield, CT, The Indian Valley YMCA summer camp in Ellington, CT, Camp Nowashe in Easter Hartford, CT, Camp Dakota in Hartford, CT, and Camp Glawackus in South Glastonbury, CT. Sonar was also busy during the summer, making over a dozen appearances within the community. Sonar stopped by the CT Children’s Craniofacial Awareness Picnic, the...

Rookie blue-liner earned first professional points in 10 games with Greenville last season By: Mark Binetti, Greenville Swamp Rabbits GREENVILLE, S.C. – The Greenville Swamp Rabbits, proud ECHL affiliate of the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings, announced today that Jake Flynn will return to the Swamp Rabbits for the 2024-25 ECHL Season. Flynn is the sixth defenseman announced to the roster, joining Jacob Modry, Max Coyle, Bobby Russell, Joshua Karlsson, and Miles Gendron on the blue line. He is the eighteenth player overall announced to the team for this upcoming season. Flynn comes back to the Swamp Rabbits having skated his first professional games with the team last year following the conclusion of his NCAA career. The 6’1”, 185-pound blue-liner made his professional debut on March 22nd at Jacksonville, earning an assist in a 5-4 win. He later followed up with his first professional goal in his home debut on March 28th, contributing to a 3-2 overtime win against Savannah. In total, Flynn pla...

By: Alex Thomas, Hartford Wolf Pack HARTFORD, CT – The Hartford Wolf Pack will begin the 2024-25 AHL campaign with preseason action this October. The club will play a pair of away contests while hosting one game against the rival Bridgeport Islanders. This preseason installment of the ‘Battle of Connecticut’ will take place on Thursday, October 3rd, at 6:00 p.m. on the campus of Trinity College. This marks the third consecutive season in which the Wolf Pack have hosted their preseason home games at Trinity College. The game will take place at the Koeppel Community Sports Center, which is located on Trinity’s campus at 175 New Britain Avenue, Hartford, CT. The contest will be open to the public, with doors opening at 5:15 p.m. While the game is free of charge, all fans attending are encouraged to make a $5 charitable donation when entering the arena. This charitable donation is cash only. The charitable donation from this preseason game will benefit PawSafe Animal Rescue in E...

Rookie comes to the Upstate following completion of USports college career By: Mark Binetti, Greenville Swamp Rabbits GREENVILLE, S.C. – The Greenville Swamp Rabbits, proud ECHL affiliate of the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings, announced today that Reed Morison has signed with the Swamp Rabbits for the 2024-25 ECHL Season. Morison, the eleventh forward and seventeenth player announced to the Swamp Rabbits roster, comes to the Upstate after completing his USports Canadian college career with the University of Western Ontario. The 6’3”, 200-pound center set career highs in his final season with the Mustangs earning a dozen points, split between six goals and assists, in 23 contests. “When you turn professional, you want to start your career with an organization that has a great culture and will help you grow. Talking with Colton Young, who I grew up playing with, Greenville checks all the boxes: it’s a great city, great fans, and an awesome organization to be a part of. I’m excited for the y...

By: Kelly Masse, Hockey Hall Of Fame   TORONTO (September 9, 2024) – Lanny McDonald , Chair of the Board of the Hockey Hall of Fame, announced today that Mike Gartner will be appointed to succeed McDonald at the end of his 10-year term limit in June 2025.  Effective October 1, 2024, Gartner will assume the role of Chair-elect to support transitional matters and serve on the search committee for the recruitment of a new President and CEO with further information to be announced in a few weeks ( see media release dated June 26, 2024 ). Inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2001, Gartner played 19 seasons in the NHL accumulating 708 goals, 627 assists and 1,335 points, and in 2017 he was named one of the 100 Greatest NHL Players in the League's 100-year history.   He served as President of the NHLPA from 1996 until his playing career retirement in 1998.  Later, as Director, Business Relations, he represented the NHLPA on the Hockey Hall of Fame Board of Di...

By: Alex Thomas, Hartford Wolf Pack HARTFORD, CT – The Hartford Wolf Pack, American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the NHL’s New York Rangers, announced today that single-game tickets for the 2024-25 season will be available for purchase on Monday, September 16th, at 10:00 a.m. The Wolf Pack will open the home portion of their 2024-25 schedule on Friday, October 18th, at the XL Center against the Springfield Thunderbirds! The puck drop is set for 7:00 p.m. The full regular season schedule and promotional schedule for the 2024-25 season can be found at www.hartfordwolfpack.com . Fans can purchase the CTDOT Family Value Pack now, with tickets starting at $69 plus fees (Blue Section) and $81 plus fees (Red Section). This ticket package includes three tickets, three hot dogs, and three sodas! The CTDOT Family Value Pack is available for the games on October 27th, November 24th, December 14th, January 12th, and March 9th and can be purchased here . Returning this season are...

Oshawa Generals captain averaged almost a point-per-game over the final two seasons By: Mark Binetti, Greenville Swamp Rabbits GREENVILLE, S.C. – The Greenville Swamp Rabbits, proud ECHL affiliate of the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings, announced today that Stuart Rolofs has signed his first professional contract with the Swamp Rabbits ahead of the 2024-25 ECHL Season. Rolofs is the ninth forward announced to the Swamp Rabbits roster, joining Ben Freeman, Austin Saint, Arvid Caderoth, Ben Poisson, Tyson Fawcett, Brent Pedersen, Patrick Moynihan, and AHL contracted forward Colton Young. Rolofs joins the Swamp Rabbits following the conclusion of his major junior career and spent last season with the OHL’s Oshawa Generals. The 6’2”, 200-pound forward earned 30 goals or more for a second consecutive season last year, with his 32 ignitions of the goal lamp headlining 58 points in 64 games. As captain of the Generals, Rolofs added another 11 points (5g-6ast) in 21 playoff games, leading the ...

The Rookie forward made his professional debut with AHL Chicago last season By: Mark Binetti, Greenville Swamp Rabbits GREENVILLE, S.C. – The Greenville Swamp Rabbits, proud ECHL affiliate of the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings, announced that Patrick Moynihan has signed with the Swamp Rabbits for the 2024-25 ECHL Season. Moynihan is the eighth forward announced to the Swamp Rabbits roster, joining Ben Freeman, Austin Saint, Arvid Caderoth, Ben Poisson, Tyson Fawcett, recently acquired Brent Pedersen, and AHL contracted forward Colton Young. Moynihan joins the Swamp Rabbits following his professional debut and the conclusion of his college hockey career. The 5’11”, 195-pound forward played his first pro game with the AHL’s Chicago Wolves, registering two shots on goal in a 4-3 overtime loss at Rockford on March 20th. He preceded his debut with his final season of NCAA hockey with Notre Dame, earning 10 goals, 14 assists, and 24 points in 36 games. “My conversations with Coach Mount...

By: Luke Hanlon, For Hockey Hall of Fame US Hockey Hall of Fame’s Class of 2024 announced Thursday that Matt Cullen ,  Brianna Decker ,  Frederic McLaughlin ,  Kevin Stevens ,  and the  2002 Paralympic Sled Hockey Team . “From gold medals on the Olympic and Paralympic stage to Stanley Cup championships, this class has impacted our sport in extraordinary ways that will continue to be felt for generations to come,” said Pat Kelleher, the executive director of USA Hockey. The Class of 2024 will be enshrined at the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Induction Celebration on Saturday, Dec. 4, in Pittsburgh. MATT CULLEN While Cullen played for eight teams over his 21 NHL seasons, Pittsburgh holds a special place in his heart. In addition to winning two Stanley Cups with the Penguins, his three sons also found a second home in the Pittsburgh locker room and grew up in the city. “It's just a huge honor for me, and it's especially great having the ceremony in Pittsburgh,” C...