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New York Rangers Sign NCAA Goaltender Chris Nell

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The New York Rangers have inked another NCAA free agent, signing goaltender Chris Nell out of Bowling Green State. The netminder has decided to turn pro after his junior season, another one in which he ranked among the nation’s best in most categories.

Undrafted, Nell debuted at Bowling Green in 2014 and has never looked back. With a .930 save percentage last season, he led the WCHA and has had another solid year with a .917. Though he’s not a huge target, Nell is known for his ability to recover after playing an initial shot aggressively and will need to keep that attitude at the professional level. If you’ve heard of a “battling” goaltender, you’ll recognize it in Nell who will never give up on a play.

A former state champion in high school hockey in Green Bay, Nell should be looked at down the road as an AHL starting goaltender. As with any goalie though, it is hard to project how their game will develop as they enter their mid-twenties and the Rangers are hoping he can advance all the way to the NHL. At just 22 years of age, he still has a lot of time to develop the skills to be a solid professional.

Sabres Notes: Kulikov, Expansion, Petersen

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The Buffalo Sabres haven’t had a good season. Struggling to get anything going through injury after injury, and seeing players fail to meet expectations on a regular basis has sent them to the bottom of the standings once again. GM Tim Murray took to the airwaves today to talk about the season so far and John Vogl of the Buffalo News and Joe Yerdon of NHL.com relayed the information on Twitter.

One name mentioned in particular was Dmitry Kulikov, who Murray said he expected to play like a top-3 defenseman this year. Admitting that it “didn’t work out” is putting it lightly, as Kulikov has just two points in 39 games and is a -17. Injury and inconsistency have both plagued the former Florida Panther this year, as he heads into unrestricted free agency this summer. After earning $4.3MM per year on his current three-year deal, Kulikov will be hard pressed to find a similar pay day on the open market.

  • At the expansion draft in June, Murray expects to go with the seven forward, three defense option. In fact, he has already reached out to Vegas GM George McPhee on who he doesn’t want to lose. At first glance, it appears as though Buffalo may be at risk of losing a player like Marcus Foligno or Zemgus Girgensons, though they could easily make a deal with the Golden Knights to take someone else instead.
  • The Sabres are hoping that Calvin Peterson will turn pro after Notre Dame finishes their college season. The NCAA goaltender has been one of the best in the country the last three seasons, recording .919, .927 and .928 save percentages. A fifth-round pick of the Sabres in 2013, Murray says there is opportunity in net in the Sabres organization and feels there is a solid relationship between the two sides.

Snapshots: Kurker, Hunlak, Stone

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The Albany Devils have signed one of the most interesting college names in the country to an amateur tryout according to Mark Divver of the Providence Journal. Sam Kurker of Northeastern was originally drafted in 2012 by the St. Louis Blues and headed to Boston University to begin his college career. After a frustrating season and a half at BU, Kurker decided to take his talents elsewhere and headed back to the USHL to play for the Indiana Ice. Upon finishing the 2013-14 season with Indiana—and winning a championship—the team closed its doors and Kurker headed to the Sioux City Musketeers.

After an outstanding season for Sioux City Kurker went back to the NCAA ranks, this time at Northeastern. In two years at the school Kurker had similar frustrations as during his time for BU, and finished this season with just six points in 28 games. The former top prospect was overshadowed by other names like Zach Aston-Reese and Adam Gaudette, and will now try to continue his hockey career in Albany.

  • Any Toronto Maple Leafs fans that are hoping the pairing of Roman Polak and Matt Hunwick—affectionately nicknamed “Hunlack”—will be broken up should quit holding their breath, as a new article from Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston relays that Mike Babcock is very happy with the way they’re playing. Despite being horrendous weights on the team’s possession numbers, Babcock goes by other evaluation tools like “knowing where to stand”. While younger players often get caught chasing the puck in their own zone, the Leafs coach is happy to deploy a more veteran pair on defense.
  • Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Citizen writes that Mark Stone is getting closer to returning to the Ottawa Senators lineup and has taken a “major” step towards that goal by getting back on the ice today. With the Senators losing their last four games, they’ve slipped down far enough to allow Boston and Toronto just a sliver of hope in the Atlantic race, and could use Stone’s help to slam that door shut for the final time. If they’re to do any damage in the playoffs, they’ll need their top forward healthy enough to contribute; they’ve scored just six goals in those four recent losses.

Philadelphia Flyers Sign Mark Friedman To ELC

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Tuesday: Kevin Gordon of the Bowling Green State site reports that Friedman has signed the contract this morning and will be going pro.

Monday: According to Dave Isaac of the Courier-Post, the Philadelphia Flyers are expected to sign third-round pick Mark Friedman out of Bowling Green State. The defenseman just completed his junior year, meaning he would be leaving school early to sign with the Flyers.

Friedman, 21, is another one of the sub-six foot defenders coming out of the college ranks who has succeeded in spite of his height. The puck-moving defenseman has always had loads of talent with the puck, but has trouble in his own end at times. With 26 points in 40 games this year, he’s proven once again he can contribute offensively—though that has never really been in doubt.

Should the Flyers pluck him out of school early, they can start giving him important minutes with Lehigh Valley immediately, and try to coax another NHL defender out of a mid-round pick. Shayne Gostisbehere was also a third-round pick that played three seasons in the NCAA before making an immediate impact last season. Perhaps Friedman, who is built much the same, can follow a similar path.

Anaheim Ducks Sign Mitch Hults To Entry-Level Contract

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The Anahiem Ducks have gotten in on the college free agent frenzy, inking Mitch Hults to a two-year deal. Hults will report to the San Diego Gulls on an amateur tryout for the remainder of this season, along with Austin Ortega, another NCAA standout. The pair will help San Diego in their playoff run, as the Gulls currently sit in second place in the Pacific division.

Hults has spent the last two seasons at Lake Superior State, where he broke out this year with 34 points in 38 games. The forward led the club in points while being one of only a handful of players that ended the season with a positive +/- rating. A player who looks like a classic late bloomer, Hults never stood out in the USHL in his draft years and only started finding offensive success as a 20-year old in 2014-15 with the Madison Capitols. Cutting down on undisciplined penalties was a big step forward for Hults this year, as he started using his speed—which is excellent—and skill more and more. He’ll try to continue that growth with the Bears for the rest of this year, before being a real threat for an NHL roster spot as soon as 2017-18.

Ortega on the other hand is a classic case of being overlooked because of his size, as he stands at a generously recorded 5’8″ 170-lbs. His offensive skill has never been in question and he showed it off this year at the University of Nebraska with 47 points in 38 games. With three straight 20-goal seasons in the NCAA ranks, Ortega has been able to find a way to limit his weaknesses while preying on some less skilled opponents. That will be much harder to do at the professional level, but the 22-year old has found success at every level and shouldn’t be doubted. He’ll look to earn an AHL deal for next year, and prove down the line that he can keep up with the more physical professional game.

 

Sharks Sign Quinnipiac’s Tim Clifton

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Monday: The Sharks have officially announced the signing.

Saturday: The San Jose Sharks have entered the college free agent mix, as TSN’s Frank Servalli reports that the team has agreed to an entry-level contract with Quinnipiac University forward Tim Clifton. It is a two-year, two-way deal for the 24-year-old undrafted center. With Quinnipiac eliminated from the ECAC conference tournament by Harvard last night and not in the mix for an at-large bid for the NCAA Tournament this year, Clifton will now likely head to San Jose to join the AHL Barracuda for the remainder of the season.

Clifton’s NHL signing may come as a surprise to some. One of the major catalysts in Quinnipiac’s run to the NCAA Championship last year, in which they lost for the second time in four years, Clifton’s numbers fell off significantly in his 2016-17 senior season. Clifton had amassed 43 points and a +27 rating in 39 games during his junior campaign, but followed it up this year with just 25 points and a -8 rating in the same amount of games. After having only a minor role in his first two year’s at Quinnipiac and a subpar final season, it appears that the Sharks are paying Clifton based on one season of high-end performance. Though the New Jersey native definitely has some potential, it seems likely that San Jose fans will have to wait some time to see if he develops into an NHL-caliber player.

It’s a low-risk investment for an organization that has found some recent success in the NCAA ranks. Ryan Carpenter, who has begun to carve out a role for himself in San Jose, was also an undrafted free agent who joined the Sharks out of Bowling Green State University in 2014, while rookie Danny O’Regan was skating with Boston University this time last year after being a late-round Sharks draft selection. Of course, the best college player in San Jose is none other than captain Joe Pavelski, who was a seventh-round pick of the Sharks in 2003 and played at the University of Wisconsin before becoming an NHL star. Clifton has a long way to go to be the next Pavelski, but could possibly become a Carpenter-type after a year or two in the AHL.

College Notes: Vegas, Schuldt, Butcher, Flyers

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Although many have speculated that the Golden Knights would be highly active in the college free agent market, that isn’t going to be the case, GM George McPhee told ESPN’s Craig Custance (Insider required).  The team is focusing at this point on targeting players who they believe have NHL upside in the near-term instead of signing several to fill spots at the minor league level for next season.

Custance adds that one of the players that Vegas has interest in is defenseman Neal Pionk.  The Minnesota-Duluth sophomore is expected to have quite a few teams interested in his services should he decide to turn pro.  Although he’s undersized at just 5’11, he boasts a powerful shot that could make him a strong power play threat down the road.

Other news and notes from the NCAA:

  • While he was likely to draw NHL interest, St. Cloud defenseman Jimmy Schuldt has decided to not go pro and instead return for his junior NCAA season, reports Ryan Kennedy of The Hockey News (Twitter link). This isn’t the first time the 21 year old has spurned overtures to sign with an NHL team as he was one of the more sought after blueliners on the market last season.  In 36 games with the Huskies this season, Schuldt had eight goals and 11 assists.
  • The Avalanche plan to offer a contract to defenseman Will Butcher in the coming days, reports BSNDenver’s Adrian Dater. Colorado drafted the 22 year old back in the fifth round (123rd overall) back in 2013.  If he doesn’t come to terms on a contract, he would be eligible for unrestricted free agency in mid-August.  This season with the University of Denver, Butcher has six goals and 29 assists in 39 games.
  • Flyers GM Ron Hextall landed one of the more notable college free agents last season in goaltender Alex Lyon and told CSN Philly’s Jordan Hall that he’s hopeful that they will be able to add someone in the coming weeks. However, he noted that Philadelphia’s depth of young prospects at all positions could ultimately work against them as players may opt to pursue a spot with an organization that doesn’t have as many youngsters to compete with for a spot.

NCAA Announces Tournament Bracket

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It’s March, and that means the college hockey playoffs are starting to ramp up. If you watched this week’s conference championships, you’re likely familiar with some of the teams that will be fighting for a chance to play in the Frozen Four in Chicago. Today, the NCAA announced the official matchups for the upcoming tournament, which you can find below:

West Regional (Fargo, ND)

  • #1 Minnesota Duluth vs. #4 Ohio State
  • #2 Boston University vs. #3 North Dakota

East Regional (Providence, RI)

  • #1 Harvard vs. #4 Providence
  • #2 Western Michigan vs. #3 Air Force

Midwest Regional (Cincinnati, OH)

  • #1 Denver vs. #4 Michigan Tech
  • #2 Union vs. #3 Penn State

Northeast Regional (Manchester, NH)

  • #1 Minnesota vs. #4 Notre Dame
  • #2 UMass Lowell vs. #3 Cornell

AHL’s Rampage Sign Pair Of College Free Agents

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The Colorado Avalanche need all the help they can get, and their AHL affiliate may have helped them out by bringing in a couple NCAA free agents for Joe Sakic and his staff to take a look at over the next couple of months. The San Antonio Rampage announced today that they have inked Brady Shaw and Ben Storm to amateur tryout contracts. With their respective teams out of NCAA postseason contention, the pair will now get a chance to show how they fit at the next level in an effort to secure contracts with San Antonio (or possibly even Colorado) for next season or else become free agents again in a few months.

Of the two, the defenseman Storm is likely the better pro prospect. Ironically, Storm was a sixth-round draft pick of the Avalanche in 2013, prior to their affiliation with the Rampage, but has yet to sign an entry-level team with the deal and may never. Storm was a four-year starter at St. Cloud State University, holding down the blue line as a stay-at-home defenseman. Although Storm lacks much offensive upside – just four goals and 13 assists in 121 collegiate contests – he makes up for it with solid defense and checking. The 6’7″, 229-lb. behemoth from Laurium, Michigan is always the most physical presence on the ice and skates surprisingly well for a player his size. Storm may need some time in the minor leagues to refine his puck handling and movement, but as they say “you can’t teach size”, and Storm’s stature alone should keep the 22-year-old employed in pro hockey for a while.

The forward Shaw has a more uphill battle in pursuing his NHL dreams. After an explosive sophomore season at the University of Vermont in 2014-15, during which he recorded 31 points in 38 games and showed a complete game, Shaw’s performance has dropped off in each of the past two seasons. Shaw scored just 16 points in 36 games last year and 19 points in 34 games this season, all whilst struggling with the two-way pressure of playing a larger role on the team. A former star in the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL), Shaw was a highly-touted prospect who simply didn’t meet expectations at the college level. The 24-year-old may be able to rediscover his game in the AHL, but as of now as a lot of work to do to become more than just a replacement-level minor league player.

Tyler Kelleher Signs With Milwaukee Admirals

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Despite being tied to the New Jersey Devils in recent days, Tyler Kelleher of the University of New Hampshire has signed an AHL contract with the Milwaukee Admirals—Nashville’s AHL affiliate—for the remainder of the season and all of 2017-18. The Predators seem to have swooped in and stolen the 22-year old forward right out from under the rest of the league’s noses. Tyler Kelleher

A finalist for the Hobey Baker award for the nation’s top player, Kelleher scored 63 points in 40 games for New Hampshire this season. The extremely small winger has been more than a point-per-game player during his college career, and will go down as one of the all-time great offensive weapons to come out of the school.

It is that size though, that will be his biggest obstacle at the professional level. Listed at just 5’6″ 160-lbs, Kelleher has always been one of the smallest players at whatever level he’s played. It’s likely why he wasn’t drafted despite a successful stint on the US Development Team, and likely why he couldn’t lock down an entry-level contract this spring.

This doesn’t mean that the Predators are the only destination for the young sniper, but it will give them a leg up if he proves that he deserves an NHL deal eventually. If he can bring that dynamic offensive game to the next level, they could easily have found another exceptional talent that was overlooked because of his height.

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