Alumni in the Pros: July 2011

[Al DeFlorio]

Blurb in yesterday's paper that Ray Sawada signed a one-year contract with the Dallas Stars.  No specifics.

[jkahn]

More details on the Sawada signing:
http://stars.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=569634

[gonyr]

Byron Bitz has signed with Vancouver.

http://tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=372458

[Rita]

Byron Bitz has signed with Vancouver.

http://tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=372458

Here's hoping things work out better for him in Vancouver than they did in Florida.

[Ronald '09]

Byron Bitz has signed with Vancouver.

http://tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=372458

The TSN article didn't specify, but it's a two-way deal, which carries a $700K NHL salary.  Anyone have any idea about his current health?

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/hockey/canucks-add-byron-bitz-to-the-mix/article2109240/

[billhoward]

Financially, Bitz sounds healthy.

The last sentence of the Globe and Mail story was nice. "It should also be noted that Bitz comes from an Ivy League school, and that the Canucks under general manager Mike Gillis have long been enamored with players who have strong scholastic backgrounds, because they believe such players have the tools to understand what it takes to succeed in hockey, and in life."

[pfibiger]

I have to say, this is a pretty depressing article about David McKee joining the Quad City Mallards of the Triple A American Hockey League (never heard of it):

http://qctimes.com/sports/hockey/professional/minor/article_3447f6b2-b944-11e0-828f-001cc4c002e0.html

[David Harding]

I have to say, this is a pretty depressing article about David McKee joining the Quad City Mallards of the Triple A American Hockey League (never heard of it):

http://qctimes.com/sports/hockey/professional/minor/article_3447f6b2-b944-11e0-828f-001cc4c002e0.html

The Quad City Mallards are in the CHL, which is the league he played in last year with the Odessa Jackalopes, making this a lateral move.  I interpreted the lead sentence to say that McKee had experience in the American Hockey League, with the "Triple A" meant as an explanation for those unfamiliar with the relative strengths of the leagues that the AHL was just one notch below the big league.

[redice]

The Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees of the Central Hockey League (CHL) announced on Tuesday the signing of forward Dan Nichols (6'0, 196)

[pfibiger]

I have to say, this is a pretty depressing article about David McKee joining the Quad City Mallards of the Triple A American Hockey League (never heard of it):

http://qctimes.com/sports/hockey/professional/minor/article_3447f6b2-b944-11e0-828f-001cc4c002e0.html

The Quad City Mallards are in the CHL, which is the league he played in last year with the Odessa Jackalopes, making this a lateral move.  I interpreted the lead sentence to say that McKee had experience in the American Hockey League, with the "Triple A" meant as an explanation for those unfamiliar with the relative strengths of the leagues that the AHL was just one notch below the big league.

Ah ok, had a bit of a reading comprehension problem I guess It appears they've expanded and changed the article and it's filled with quotes, not just a sharp turn in the second paragraph.

[jtwcornell91]

If I'm not mistaken, Adam Wodon, former Voice of the Big Red and founder of College Hockey News, used to be associated with the Quad City Mallards.  (He can probably confirm that himself, and provide more insight into the organization.)

[RichH]

IIRC, the Quad City Mallards used to be in the UHL, the same league as the Elmira Jackals, for reference.

Some wiki-procrasitnation tells me that Elmira left the league in 2007 and joined the ECHL.  The UHL changed names to the IHL that same year, and merged with the CHL in 2010.

The Mallards folded in 2007, came back into existence in 2009, "ceased operations" in May 2011 and were saved in June with a new ownership/management group.

The wild world of minor league hockey.

[profudge]

Colin Greening will be wearing jersey number 14 for the Sens next season:

. . .
Greening was also in a much higher number during his NHL time last season, wearing 52 up top. He wore 15 at Cornell and with the B-Sens, but that belongs to Zack Smith, so looks like he went with the closest available option.
 . . .
 ... if my counting is accurate, that means the Senators will open training camp on Thursday, Sept. 15, two days after the rookie tournament in Oshawa concludes.