Headlines

Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Cooper Marody

AHL Notes: Marody, Fizer, Johnson, Newkirk, Scheel

at CDT | by 2 Comments

AHL fixture Cooper Marody is returning to the Flyers organization after signing a two-year AHL contract with Lehigh Valley yesterday, per a team release. The 27-year-old became a UFA this summer after the two-year, two-way deal he signed with Philadelphia as a Group VI UFA in 2022 expired.

Marody was a sixth-round pick of the Flyers back in 2015 but never signed with them, instead landing with the Oilers as a free agent after a dominant senior season at Michigan in 2017-18. He spent four seasons in Edmonton as one of the AHL’s most dominant scoring threats, routinely putting up over a point per game, but appeared in only seven NHL games for them during that time. He reunited with Philly on the open market, but much like his time in Edmonton, he didn’t get an NHL shot and spent the entirety of his now-expired two-year deal in the minors.

Lehigh Valley hasn’t gotten the best version of Marody, but he’s still been a bonafide top-six AHL contributor. He led them in scoring last season with 56 points (19 goals, 37 assists) in 68 games. Marody has 271 points in 297 career AHL games dating back to his professional debut and will take part in his eighth minor-league season in 2024-25. He’ll play an important role in helping anchor the Flyers’ farm team as they look to graduate prospects from Lehigh Valley in the latter stages of their rebuild.

More updates from the AHL:

  • The Blues’ primary affiliate was busy yesterday as the Springfield Thunderbirds announced a trio of signings. Forwards Tarun Fizer and Reece Newkirk, as well as goaltender Cam Johnson, will help fill out St. Louis’ organizational depth next season. Fizer does still carry a bit of upside at age 23, but the former Western Hockey League All-Star has struggled to keep a full-time role in the AHL since turning pro. The 5’11” winger had five points in 30 games for the Belleville Senators last season but looked quite comfortable at the ECHL level, posting 10 points in a 10-game stint for the Allen Americans. He’ll look to provide scoring depth for the T-Birds but may begin the season on assignment to the Blues’ new ECHL affiliate, the Florida Everblades. Newkirk, 23, was a fifth-round pick of the Islanders and 2019 but became a UFA this summer upon being non-tendered at the conclusion of his entry-level contract. He had three points in 16 games with AHL Bridgeport last season but, like Fizer, was an effective producer in limited ECHL minutes with 14 points in 16 games for the Worcester Railers. Johnson, 30, has backstopped ECHL Florida to three consecutive Kelly Cup championships and will head back there for another campaign. He’s been unreal in ECHL playoff action, posting a .928 SV% and 1.97 GAA with 11 shutouts and a 47-16 record in 63 games over the past three years.
  • The Avalanche continued to replenish their goaltending depth with the AHL’s Colorado Eagles signing Adam Scheel to a one-year deal. Scheel, 25, was an undrafted free agent signing by the Stars out of North Dakota in 2021 but wasn’t given a qualifying offer when his entry-level contract expired in 2023. He spent last season in the starter’s crease for the AHL’s Chicago Wolves, making a career-high 42 appearances with a 2.84 GAA and .907 SV%. He’ll compete for playing time with the Avs’ NHL-contracted depth goalies, Kevin Mandolese and Trent Miner.

AHL Notes: Cates, Unger Sörum, Marody

at CDT | by 5 Comments

The AHL affiliate of the Chicago Blackhawks, the Rockford IceHogs, will have a familiar face on the roster next season. The team announced they have agreed to terms with forward Jackson Cates to a one-year AHL contract for the 2024-25 AHL season.

Cates joined the IceHogs last year on a professional tryout agreement after the Philadelphia Flyers decided not to tender him a contract for the 2023-24 NHL season. The young forward came to the Flyers organization after a strong showing with the University of Minnesota-Duluth as an undrafted free agent. In three years split between Philadelphia and AHL Lehigh Valley, Cates tallied two assists in 20 NHL games while scoring 33 points in 102 AHL games.

Cates was by no means a standout player in Rockford but did finish 10th on the team in scoring with 11 goals and 25 points in 50 games. He also spent a brief period with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers last year where he tallied one goal in 12 contests. As the Blackhawks continue to graduate prospects through the farm system this season, Cates will be a good bit of continuity for the younger players to get accustomed to professional life.

Other AHL notes:

  • According to Chip Alexander of the Raleigh News & Observer, the Carolina Hurricanes will bring prospect Felix Unger Sörum to North America this season where he will likely play for the team’s AHL affiliate, the Chicago Wolves. Beginning to look like one of the better playmakers from the 2023 NHL Draft, Unger Sörum scored three goals and 12 assists for Leksands IF of the SHL this season after being selected with the 62nd overall pick by the Hurricanes.
  • Although nothing is confirmed to this point, all signs indicate forward Cooper Marody will return to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms on an AHL contract for the 2024-25 season according to Tony Androckitis of Insider AHL Hockey. Marody has spent the last two years with the Phantoms where he has posted 34 goals and 96 points in 115 games. As the team’s highest scorer from the 2023-24 regular season, Marody also tallied five assists in six playoff matchups before Lehigh Valley was eliminated in the Atlantic Division semifinals by the Hershey Bears.

Philadelphia Flyers Sign Five Players

at CDT | by 3 Comments

The Philadelphia Flyers have announced five depth signings, including Cooper Marody, whose name emerged earlier today. The others are Troy Grosenick, Louis Belpedio, Kevin Connauton, and Adam Brooks. The five have signed the following contracts:

  • Brooks: Two-year, two-way contract, $762.5K AAV
  • Marody: Two-year, two-way contract, $762.5K AAV
  • Connauton: Two-year, two-way contract, $762.5K AAV
  • Belpedio: One-year, two-way contract, $750K
  • Grosenick: One-year, one-way contract, $750K

These deals certainly won’t excite many Flyers fans, who have struggled to see the plan from general manager Chuck Fletcher this offseason. They do represent some big moves for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms though, as each one has had plenty of minor league success.

The most interesting one is Grosenick, given Ivan Fedotov’s situation in Russia and the lack of many other goaltending options in the Flyers’ system. Felix Sandstrom is the odds-on favorite for the backup role, but Grosenick’s one-way deal is an interesting twist. The 32-year-old netminder has been outstanding in the minor leagues for the last several seasons, and will now be making that $750K no matter where he plays. If Sandstrom falters at all, perhaps Grosenick will be asked to take over the NHL role behind Carter Hart at some point.

Oilers Place Duncan Keith In COVID Protocol

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

It turns out that Ryan Nugent-Hopkins isn’t the only notable Oilers player to enter COVID protocol today as the team announced that defenseman Duncan Keith has also been placed there.  That triggered a series of moves with Kris Russell being transferred to LTIR retroactive to December 9th, Markus Niemelainen was moved to injured reserve, and Cooper Marody and Seth Griffith were recalled from Bakersfield of the AHL.

Keith is in his first season with Edmonton and it has been a relatively quiet one.  He had just come back from an upper-body injury that caused him to miss seven games and he has been fairly quiet offensively with just five points in 20 games although he is still logging a little over 20 minutes a night in a top-four role.

Between his placement in protocol and Niemelainen (who has averaged 14 minutes a game in his first seven NHL contests) moving to IR, they’re down to just five defensemen on the active roster which makes it a bit puzzling that two forwards were brought up.  However, both Griffith and Marody have been productive with the Condors this season as they sit first and second respectively in team scoring.  Edmonton has had secondary scoring issues pretty much all season long and it appears those two will get a chance to try to contribute.

To make that happen from a cap perspective, Russell had to be shifted to LTIR, giving Edmonton the cap space to afford to bring two players up from the minors instead of just one.  He had been listed as questionable to play in Tuesday’s game but now will miss 10 games and 24 days, pushing his return into January at the earliest.  Given that designation from earlier this week though, he could be ready to return as soon as that time is up.

31 Players Clear Waivers

at CDT | by 2 Comments

Oct 4: 31 of the 32 players placed on waivers have cleared. The Buffalo Sabres have claimed Jonsson-Fjallby from the Washington Capitals.

Oct 3: Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that, originally, 13 names have hit the waiver wire today. PuckPedia reports an additional 19 names that have found themselves on waivers today. The 13 names are as follows:

D Trevor Carrick (ANA)
D Kodie Curran (ANA)
D Brendan Guhle (ANA)
F Vinni Lettieri (ANA)
F Danny O’Regan (ANA)
D Brogan Rafferty (ANA)
F Zachary Senyshyn (BOS)
D Nick DeSimone (CGY)
D Kevin Gravel (CGY)
F Matthew Phillips (CGY)
D Andy Welinski (CGY)
D Jalen Chatfield (CAR)
D Joshua Jacobs (CAR)
F Seth Griffith (EDM)
F Cooper Marody (EDM)
F Brandon Baddock (MTL)
F Laurent Dauphin (MTL)
F Jean-Sebastien Dea (MTL)
G Michael McNiven (MTL)
F Anthony Richard (NSH)
F Brian Flynn (NJD)
F Robbie Russo (NJD)
F Greg McKegg (NYR)
F Pontus Aberg (OTT)
D Dillon Heatherington (OTT)
F Kole Sherwood (OTT)
D Tommy Cross (STL)
D Sean Day (TBL)
F Gabriel Dumont (TBL)
F Charles Hudon (TBL)
F Darren Raddysh (TBL)
F Axel Jonsson-Fjallby (WSH)

More to come…

Oilers Re-Sign Cooper Marody

at CDT | by 6 Comments

The Oilers have taken care of one of their remaining restricted free agents, announcing the re-signing of winger Cooper Marody to a one-year, two-way contract.  The deal pays the league minimum of $750K at the NHL level, meaning he accepted less than what his qualifying offer was for.  630 CHED’s Bob Stauffer reports (Twitter link) the AHL portion of the contract is worth $150K.  Marody was eligible for salary arbitration earlier this summer but opted not to file.

The 24-year-old tied for the team lead in scoring last season with AHL Bakersfield, recording 21 goals and 15 assists in 39 games.  Over parts of four seasons, Marody has produced at close to a point per game clip, recording 120 points in 130 contests.  Despite that, his NHL opportunities have been limited to just six games with Edmonton back in the 2018-19 season.

Marody will be waiver-eligible for the first time in training camp and that type of production at the minor league level could get him on the radar of teams if he was to be placed on the wire to send back to Bakersfield.  Before it comes to that, however, he’ll have a chance to battle for an end-of-roster spot with the Oilers in training camp.

Edmonton GM Ken Holland still has some work to do on the RFA front as winger Kailer Yamamoto remains unsigned with the start of camps less than two weeks away.  With limited cap space, the expectation is that he will ultimately have to take a short-term contract in order to keep the cap hit down.

Pro Hockey Rumors is not affiliated with National Hockey League, NHL or NHL.com

scroll to top