Minor Transactions: 09/07/21
The shortened offseason is almost over as NHL training camps are just a few weeks away, with the regular season following close behind. European leagues have gotten underway and the minor league season is just around the corner. With that in mind, we’ll keep track of all the notable minor moves right here as teams attempt to round out their rosters.
- Patrick Sieloff, who spent last season with the Hartford Wolf Pack, has signed with Kolner Haie of the German DEL for the upcoming season. The 27-year-old defenseman has bounced around to several teams in the AHL over the years, suiting up in Abbotsford, Adirondack, Stockton, Binghamton, Belleville, San Diego, Syracuse, and Hartford, while only receiving two games at the NHL level.
- The Utica Comets have added some toughness, signing Patrick McGrath to an AHL deal for 2021-22. The 28-year-old McGrath split last season between the ECHL’s Indy Fuel and the AHL’s Rochester Americans, being his normally in-your-face self no matter where he was playing. The undrafted forward has carved out a role as a fourth-line agitator and has just nine points in 106 AHL games. Even at the ECHL level, there isn’t much difference, as McGrath has just 15 points in 162 games at the low minors.
- After a short but stellar appearance in the AHL last season, goaltender Parker Gahagen is hoping to make it a whole season. The Milwaukee Admirals have announced a one-year deal with the veteran keeper, who has had a journeyman career to say the least but may be on the cusp of sustained success. Gahagen played in 17 games with the ECHL’s Utah Grizzlies last year, recording a stunning .929 save percentage and 2.02 GAA, but was even better on loan with the AHL’s Colorado Eagles, logging a .939 save percentage and 2.09 GAA for a 2-0-0 record in three appearances. While previous AHL outings have not been as successful for the West Point grad, he hopes to build on his recent results and find a role for himself in Milwaukee behind Connor Ingram.
- Trades in the ECHL are not common, but even more rare is a trade involving names familiar to NHL fans. Such a deal occurred today, as a pair of 2017 NHL Draft selections were swapped for one another. Defenseman Luke Martin was acquired by the Utah Grizzlies in exchange for forward Cedric Pare heading to the Greenville Swamp Rabbits. Martin was a second-round pick of the Carolina Hurricanes who played four seasons at the University of Michigan but was not signed by the team when he turned pro last season. Pare was a sixth-round pick of the Boston Bruins who was never signed, but made headlines anyway as the center for Alexis Lafreniere with the QMJHL’s Rimouski Oceanic in 2019-20.
Toronto Marlies Hire Hannu Toivonen, Troy Paquette
The Toronto Marlies have made a duo of coaching hires today. Lance Hornby of the Toronto Sun reports that the team will bring on Hannu Toivonen as their goalie coach and Troy Paquette as their video coach.
Toivonen’s a name that will likely ring a bell for some. Drafted by the Boston Bruins in the first round in 2002, Toivonen could never stick around at the NHL level despite strong showings early in his career in the AHL. Toivonen’s NHL career lasted just three seasons between 2005 and 2008, but he continued playing overseas and in minor leagues until his retirement just recently in 2019. After taking 2019-20 off, Toivonen got his first coaching gig as a goalie coach with the University of New England last season. He’ll now join the Marlies as his first professional coaching job, looking to make an impact with prospects such as Joseph Woll, Ian Scott, and Erik Kallgren.
The hire of Toivonen comes after the Marlies quickly announced and renounced the hiring of Dusty Imoo last month after social media backlash.
Paquette is somewhat of an early bloomer in the coaching world at just 25 years old. A former goalie, Paquette never played at a level higher than junior hockey with his last game action in 2015-16. However, this will be Paquette’s fourth season already as a video coach. He’s been with the OHL’s Kingston Frontenacs for the past three years, as well as serving as the goalie coach for Queen’s University the past two seasons.
Minor Transactions: 09/02/21
The KHL season is underway and hockey in North America is right around the corner. As always, well keep track of all the notable minor moves as they come in.
- The Toronto Marlies have signed Zach O’Brien and Marcus Power to AHL contracts, bringing back two members of the Kelly Cup-winning Newfoundland Growlers group from 2019. Both forwards took their talents to Germany in 2020-21, lighting up the second tier of the DEL with EV Landshut. O’Brien recorded 40 goals and 83 points in 49 games, while Power had 29 goals and 69 points.
- Mitch Reinke, who actually played a single game in the playoffs earlier this year for the St. Louis Blues, has signed an AHL contract with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins for 2021-22. The 25-year-old defenseman became a Group VI unrestricted free agent this summer after suiting up just twice for the Blues since starting his professional career. In 18 games for the Utica Comets in 2020-21, Reinke scored 12 points.
This page will be updated with further transactions
Buffalo Sabres Sign Casey Mittelstadt
The Buffalo Sabres have reached an agreement with one of their restricted free agents, signing Casey Mittelstadt to a three-year deal. The contract comes with an average annual value of $2.5MM, a nice boost for a player that still hasn’t quite lived up to his high draft pedigree.
Mittelstadt, 22, was the eighth overall pick in 2017, selected a few spots ahead of young players like Martin Necas and Nick Suzuki who have already established themselves as key parts with their respective teams. In Buffalo, Mittelstadt has experienced the same struggles that almost everyone else on the roster has, posting just 61 points in 155 games. In 2019-20 he was sent to the Rochester Americans for half the season to work on his game, as it was not quite consistent enough to help the NHL squad.
The encouraging part about Mittelstadt, and why this three-year contract may look like quite a bargain very quickly, is his performance under head coach Don Granato. When Granato took over partway through last season, Mittelstadt had just one goal and five points in 13 games. He was seeing inconsistent minutes and not regularly lining up at center. That changed under the new head coach, and the young forward took a huge step forward, scoring nine goals and 17 points in 28 games through the end of the season. In those matches, he averaged more than 17 minutes a night and played center full-time.
If Mittelstadt can continue to play up to his draft pedigree under Granato, the Sabres have a true building block to help turn things around. The young forward has outstanding puck skills and playmaking ability, but seemed completely lost at times under the previous regimes. The team is obviously not giving up on him, investing in a multi-year deal ahead of what could be a breakout season.
The $2.5MM cap charge brings the Sabres a little closer to the cap floor, with Rasmus Dahlin and Henri Jokiharju still to sign. The big question is Jack Eichel though, as a trade would leave the Sabres scrambling to add salary if a similar number–$10MM–didn’t come back the other way.
Alan Quine Signs AHL Contract
Alan Quine may be known more for his scoring prowess in the AHL than for anything else, but the veteran forward has played on an NHL contract in each of his nine pro seasons. That streak will come to an end this year, as Quine has signed a one-year deal with the AHL’s Henderson Silver Knights, the team announced.
Quine, 28, played exclusively in the minors this past season while under contract with the Edmonton Oilers, the first time he had gone without an NHL appearance since 2014-15. A perennial depth asset, apart from one 61-game season with the New York Islanders, Quine is a prototypical “AAAA” player, to steal a baseball term. He possesses the skill to produce in a major way in the AHL, with a career mark of .84 points per game in 285 games, but it doesn’t translate to the NHL. Quine has just ten goals and 28 points to his credit in over 100 career NHL games for a career mark of .26 points per game, over three times less than his AHL pace. All but ten of these points also came in his one season as an NHL regular, meaning his spot starts ever since have produced few results. Quine also lacks the defensive ability to contribute in a bottom-six role, further limiting his use. The result is an offensive depth option whose lack of actual production over the years has progressively limited his opportunity to the point that he is now in the AHL full-time.
With that said, Quine’s days as an impact player are far from over. Quine spent all but seven AHL games on the Oilers taxi squad last season and never saw one game; he is surely ready to get back to work. Playing on an AHL contract, without wasting time as an NHL scratch or taxi squad member, will allow the veteran forward to focus solely on his play in the minors and helping to develop his teammates. Filling a leadership vacuum in Henderson, who saw Danny O’Regan and Dylan Sikura depart this off-season, Quine will take on a top role for the Silver Knights and will very likely return to scoring at better than a point-per-game pace. Who knows, perhaps Quine may even do enough to get another NHL look next summer. The opportunity is there to show that he is still a talented offensive asset that could bring value to an NHL club.
Daniel Brickley Signs In AHL
When the 2020-21 season ended, Daniel Brickley became a Group VI unrestricted free agent. His two-year contract with the Los Angeles Kings was over, this time without a single NHL game to show for it. Now, he’s headed back to the AHL on a one-year deal with the Chicago Wolves.
Brickley, 26, was a highly sought-after undrafted college free agent in 2018 and visited with several teams including the Detroit Red Wings and San Jose Sharks before eventually signing his entry-level deal with Los Angeles. He had already suited up for an IIHF World Championship with Team USA and was considered a polished two-way defenseman that could step directly into the NHL after an outstanding career at Minnesota State-Mankato.
He actually did step right into the league too, playing one game for the Kings before the end of the 2017-18 season and recording his first NHL point. Things started trending down from there, however, as Brickley would play in just four games for Los Angeles the following season, spending almost the entire year at the AHL level instead. Still, it was enough to earn him another contract, this time a two-year, two-way deal with the Kings in the summer of 2019.
Since then he has only played in 36 games at the AHL level, spending a good chunk of this season on the Kings’ taxi squad instead. He cleared waivers at the beginning of the year and now has accepted an AHL contract, meaning there isn’t another NHL job waiting out there for him. It’s certainly not time to rule Brickley out entirely given his age, but his NHL future doesn’t look promising at this point.
Alec Rauhauser Signs ECHL Contract
Every year, teams and fans fall over themselves trying to find the next undrafted college free agent that can make an impact in the NHL. More often than not, those players struggle at the next level and are quickly out of the league. That’s exactly the case for Alec Rauhauser, who was not issued a qualifying offer by the Florida Panthers this offseason after his entry-level contract expired. The defenseman has now signed a contract with the ECHL’s Greenville Swamp Rabbits for 2021-22.
In March 2020 when he was signed, the Panthers general manager was still Dale Tallon. At the time, Tallon called Rauhauser a “skilled two-way defenseman” who had proven himself at the college level. Unfortunately for him, it seemed that Bill Zito, who took over the Panthers a few months later, didn’t see it the same way. Rauhauser would be loaned to Slovakia before being stashed in the ECHL for nearly the entire season, where he played 57 games with the Swamp Rabbits.
Now 26, it seems likely that Rauhauser will not receive another NHL contract. That doesn’t mean he won’t work his way up to the AHL level, but for now, he’s heading for the low minors to spend his second professional season.
Henderson Silver Knights Hire Tim Speltz
The Henderson Silver Knights finally have a general manager. The Vegas Golden Knights announced today that Tim Speltz has been hired as GM of the AHL squad, after they did not have someone holding that specific title last season. Kelly McCrimmon, GM of the Golden Knights, explained exactly why Speltz was the choice:
We are very excited to have Tim join our organization. I’ve known him for a very long time, dating back to our days in the Western Hockey League, and he has an outstanding hockey mind. As our organization has developed, we believe that it is important to our staff, players and fans to have a dedicated manager who will be involved in the day-to-day business of the Silver Knights. Tim will do an incredible job leading our efforts in Henderson.
Speltz comes to Henderson from the Toronto Maple Leafs, where he had served as head of amateur scouting the previous three seasons. He and McCrimmon had plenty of battles in the WHL, as leaders of the Spokane Chiefs and Brandon Wheat Kings respectively. Speltz served for 26 years as the GM of the Chiefs, winning two Memorial Cups and the WHL Executive of the Year award twice.
There aren’t many people who are more familiar with the WHL landscape than Speltz, who originally joined the Maple Leafs as the director of western area scouting in 2016. Now he’ll be taking on a brand new role as the GM of an AHL team, but he certainly doesn’t suffer from a lack of experience in the hockey world. The Silver Knights went 25-13-1 in 2020-21, finishing first in the Pacific Division. They lost in the division’s tournament playoff final to the Bakersfield Condors, missing out on the John D. Chick Trophy.
Griffin Reinhart Signs In EIHL
The Belfast Giants have landed quite a free agent, signing Griffin Reinhart for the upcoming season. The team has also signed J.J. Piccinich, making it quite the day for the EIHL team.
Reinhart, 27, was the fourth overall pick in 2012, selected by the New York Islanders just ahead of Morgan Rielly. While his professional career certainly didn’t go as planned, he still played 37 games at the NHL level and more than 300 in the AHL. The last two years have seen him lace up his skates in China with Kunlun Red Star of the KHL and then the Iserlohn Roosters of the DEL.
It’s quite the get for Belfast, who are actually the reigning league champions, though that came back in 2019. The last two seasons haven’t been played in full, with a four-team “Elite Series” taking place earlier this year instead.
Piccinich, 25, is also an NHL draft pick, selected in the fourth round by the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2014. He spent last season with the Orlando Solar Bears of the ECHL, scoring 29 points in 65 games.
Bruins Add Matt Thomas To AHL Coaching Staff
The Boston Bruins have added an interesting coaching prospect to the organization, hiring Matt Thomas as an assistant for the Providence Bruins of the AHL. Thomas will join the staff of new head coach Ryan Mougenel, who released the following statement:
We are all thrilled to have Matt joining our staff in Providence. Matt possesses a unique combination of high energy, innovation, and a proven eye for the game. He understands today’s athlete and his focus on communication, teaching, and forming positive relationships speaks volumes about his values as a coach. Matt is a tremendous fit for our group and understands the Bruins’ philosophy and vision that Trent and I are growing. We are eager to work together and look forward to a seamless transition as we plan our collective approach for the upcoming season.
Thomas, 45, has been a head coach since 2004, when he took over the Atlantic City Boardwalk Bullies of the ECHL. He has also coached the Fresno Falcons, Stockton Thunder, and most recently the Cincinnati Cyclones in that league, winning the ECHL Coach of the Year award in 2019. He holds the league record for most playoff games ever coached with 108. For five seasons between 2013 and 2018, he was the head coach of the University of Alaska-Anchorage program.
A move to an assistant job with Providence is the next step toward the NHL, but this isn’t a fast track. Thomas began his coaching career in 1998 at the age of 22, just after finishing his senior season at R.I.T where he captained the team. This first AHL opportunity has been a long time coming, even though he’s still relatively young for the coaching world.