Nolan Kneen Returns to Allen, Updated Roster, 10 Allen Players Attending AHL Camps, Former Allen Players in Europe, ECHL Stats Posts and Career Goalie Shutouts

 

The Allen Americans added an experienced defenseman to the roster this week with the signing of veteran Nolan Kneen. How much experience does Kneen add? The Americans have six defensemen on the roster. Nolan has six years of ECHL experience; the other five defensemen have a combined total of seven years of ECHL experience. 

Kneen is very familiar to Allen fans as he started his pro career in Allen in 2020-21. The 27-year-old, 6'0", 200 lb, right-shot defenseman from Kelowna, British Columbia, has played in 316 ECHL games (56 with Allen) and totaled 107 points (27G, 80A) and 298 penalty minutes. He spent part of his second season with Allen (2021-22) on loan to the AHL Charlotte Checkers for 18 games, where he recorded six points (1G, 5A).  

For the last three seasons, Kneen has played for the Wichita Thunder. Here is the press release issued by the Allen Americans https://allenamericans.com/news/2026/09/welcome-back-to-texas 

 

Here is a get-to-know-you Q&A video with Nolan from last season: https://wichitathunder.com/videos/meat-the-team-with-nolan-kneen-presented-by-wichita-wagyu   

 

- I had a chance to talk to Coach Martinson about the Kneen signing, and in addition to his quote in the press release about experience, skill, and physical play, the stability Kneen brings to the roster is key. Allen is likely to get contracted defensemen from two different AHL teams. That means you're more likely to lose multiple players to recall than if you had several from one team. Plus, Andre Anania has the skill to play in the AHL and is a free agent, so he can be loaned to any AHL team. Sam Sedley has not been signed, but is at training camp with Manitoba. While Allen has his ECHL rights, he may get signed by Manitoba. The bottom line is Allen could open the season with an embarrassment of riches at defense, but that depth could be put to a test if several of those defensemen get recalled or loaned to the AHL. 

Martinson was trying to find a veteran defenseman who wanted to get into coaching and stay in Allen, and Kneen fits that role. He won't be a player-assistant, but will be asked to work with the younger defensemen after practice. On the road, Kneen will be the voice of the defense on the bench on strategic moves Martinson makes during the game. With Kneen, Martinson will have a player who is in training to become a coach.    

 

- The Allen roster now stands at 20, which includes three veterans and five rookies.    

Goalies

• Brett Mirwald: rookie

 

Forwards 

• Divyne Apollon - rookie
• Spencer Asuchak - veteran
• Cole Bishop - rookie
• Chase Coughlin - rookie
• Hank Crone
• Mathieu De St. Phalle 
• Michael Gildon 
• Riley Kidney 
• Chase Maxwell 
• Anthony Rinaldi
• Zackary Shantz - rookie 
• Lukas Sillinger 
• Brayden Watts - veteran

 

Defense

• Andre Anania 
• Jackson Decker
• Nolan Kneen - veteran
• Troy Murray 
• Quinn Warmuth
• Cal Uens - rookie

 

 - By my count, the Americans will have 10 players attending AHL training camps after several attended NHL prospect and main training camps. That gives them exposure, and they will be in better shape if/when they end up at Allen's training camp.  

• Andre Anania - Tucson
• Chase Coughlin - Belleville 
• Mark Duarte - Belleville (unsigned, Allen has his ECHL rights)
• Riley Kidney - Belleville 
• Brett Mirwald - Tucson
• Zackary Shantz - Belleville
• Sam Sedley - Manitoba (unsigned, Allen has his ECHL rights)
• Luke Sillinger - Tucson
• Cal Uens - Belleville
• Quinn Warmuth - Cleveland 

 

OTHER COMMENTS

- The European hockey season is underway, and here are three former Allen players off to a good start based on points per game (PPG) and points:

• 1.60 PPG - Zane Franklin (Denmark) - 8 points (2G, 6A) in five games.
• 1.75 PPG - Scott Conway (Northern Ireland) - 7 points (4G, 3A) in four games.
• 2.00 PPG - Olivier Archambault (England) - 6 points (2G, 4A) in three games. 

 

- The number of ECHL games played by NHL/AHL contracted players in 2025-26 varied widely by team. I don't have a complete list, but teams like South Carolina and Wheeling totaled well over 600 games; Cincinnati and Savannah over 500 games, and Florida and Fort Wayne over 400 games. At the other end of the spectrum were teams like Jacksonville (152) and Allen (141). 

Some ECHL franchises are finding ways to get their affiliates to sign key veteran players to AHL contracts with no intention of them playing in the AHL. These are top players that would be signed for $1200 - $1400 per week in the ECHL, but only cost $625 against the salary cap once they sign an AHL deal. Here is how Coach Martinson explains this:

 "You are trying to stick handle between having key players you are not going to lose to the American League and players looking to move up. That is what we had when we were winning championships. A core group of guys not looking to move up who were good enough to win championships."

"To beat those teams that have proven players that are signed in the AHL but never recalled is difficult. They have a bunch of players that only cost $625 against the salary cap, which saves money that allows them to sign more players to high-end ECHL contracts."  

"Because of the salary cap, players on AHL contracts, and the number of teams, it is much harder to sign all the guys you need that are looking to stay in Allen and be good enough to win a championship. When we were winning championships, we had eight or nine of those core guys, and they all had the talent to play in the AHL, but were committed to winning in Allen."

"We have to take the risk with guys like Anania, Sedley, Duarte, and Kidney, knowing we could lose them to any AHL team. If they end up signing with our affiliate, we know they will be back for the playoffs. If they end up with a bad team, we may get them back for the playoffs, but there are several examples of players deciding they didn't want to return for the playoffs. A third possibility is a player signing with a good AHL team and isn't available to return to Allen for the playoffs because of the AHL playoffs."

"The bottom line is, to beat the top teams like Florida, who come up with a way to have their top guys never recalled, we have to take these risks." 

 

 

ECHL STATS

- If you don't follow my ECHL Stats pages on social media, here are a few of the most recent posts:

 

-   Fighting rules at all levels of hockey continue to get more restrictive. Here are the new fight rules for 2026-27 for one of Canada’s major junior hockey leagues (Ontario Hockey League), which caps team fights with fines;

 

Teams are capped at 35 fights for the regular season, down from 50. Every fight after 35 costs the club $5,000, up from $2,000.

 

Team cap for each game is still 3 fighting majors. A 4th in the same game is another $500 fine.

Players get 3 fighting majors from opening night through Dec. 31. The count resets on Jan. 1, to allow 3 more for the rest of the regular season. Playoffs are a separate bucket: three more. Go over the personal limit, and it’s a minimum two-game suspension on top of everything else.

 

 

- The vast majority of players announced thus far by ECHL teams for 2026-27 are from the USA (250) and Canada (246). However, 13 other countries are represented on ECHL rosters. Here are those 13 countries with the number of players from each:

12: Russia

5: Sweden

3: Latvia

3: South Korea

2: Belarus

2: Czechia

2: Finland

1: France

1: Hungary

1: Jamaica

1: Norway

1: Switzerland

1: Turkey

 

 

 

- When is the ECHL All-Star Break?

 

The All-Star Break for the 2026-27 Season is Monday, Jan. 25-Thursday, Jan. 28. There are to be no games, practices, or team events during the All-Star Break.

This is a positive change from the past when regular season games were scheduled during the All-Star Break. Last season, when the All-Star game was held in Allen,  there were four regular season games scheduled the same day as the All-Star game. The Idaho Steelheads will host the 2027 All-Star Classic.

 

 

 

 

- Talk about outstanding ECHL veterans: seven players on 2026-27 rosters have over 500 ECHL games played. Five of the seven (marked with an asterisk) have switched teams for 2026-27:

 

935 - Justin Taylor, Wheeling* (from Adirondack)

663 - Anthony Collins, Wichita* (from Tahoe)

627 - Logan Nelson, Rapid City* (from Greensboro & Fort Wayne)

559 - Mike McKee, Tulsa

557 - Spencer Asuchak, Allen

509 - Tyson Fawcett, Worcester* (from Adirondack)

501 - Anthony Petruzzelli, Indy* (from Fort Wayne)

 

 

 

DID YOU KNOW: In the long history of the Allen Americans franchise dating back to the 2009-10 season, only four goalies had more than two career shutouts:

 

10 - Riley Gill (including 7 in 2016-17, which is tied for 2nd all-time).

4 - Aaron Dell

3 - C.J. Motte

3 - Jake Paterson 

 

  

 

  

Allen Americans Add to Roster, Ottawa Senators Prospect Challenge Roster Has Allen Connections, European Leagues Begin Play and the Importance of ECHL Road Wins

 

The Allen Americans have added three more returning players to the roster. The players are forward Chase Maxwell and defensemen Troy Murray and Trevor LaDonne. 

 

- Chase Maxwell - here is the press release issued by the Allen Americans: https://allenamericans.com/news/2026/09/maxwell-returns 

Maxwell played in 44 games for the Americans last season and tallied five points (2G, 3A).  

 

- Troy Murray - here is the press release issued by the Allen Americans: https://allenamericans.com/news/2026/09/americans-add-size-and-toughness  

Murray played 21 games for the Americans last season, had one goal and 32 penalty minutes.

 

Trevor LeDonne - Trevor played 30 games in Allen last season and totaled seven points (2G, 5A). Coach Martinson told me there is some question about whether Trevor will be at training camp. As he does with all players, he made it clear it will be a competitive training camp, especially on defense, and nothing is assured. In addition to the six defensemen that have been announced, Coach Martinson could get up to four NHL/AHL contracted defensemen assigned, plus Sam Sedley could be in Allen to start the season. The bottom line is LeDonne is looking at other options. 

 

- The Allen roster now stands at 20, which includes two veterans and five rookies.    

Goalies

• Brett Mirwald: rookie

 

Forwards 

• Divyne Apollon - rookie
• Spencer Asuchak - veteran
• Cole Bishop - rookie
• Chase Coughlin - rookie
• Hank Crone
• Mathieu De St. Phalle 
• Michael Gildon 
• Riley Kidney 
• Chase Maxwell 
• Anthony Rinaldi
• Zackary Shantz - rookie 
• Lukas Sillinger 
• Brayden Watts - veteran

 

Defense

• Andre Anania 
• Jackson Decker 
• Trevor LeDonne
• Troy Murray 
• Quinn Warmuth
• Cal Uens - rookie

 

- The NHL rookie/prospects tournament gets underway tomorrow. Here is the Ottawa Senators roster with some familiar names to Allen fans. The question remains: how many of the players on this roster will see time in Allen this season? Two Allen-signed players, Riley Kidney and Zackary Shantz, are on the roster: 

  

- Here is the schedule for the tournament. All times are EDT:

• Saturday, September 12, 1:00 pm: Winnipeg vs Montreal
• Saturday, September 12, 6:00 pm: Ottawa vs Winnipeg
• Sunday, September 13, 1:00 pm: Toronto vs Winnipeg
• Sunday, September 13, 6:00 pm: Ottawa vs Montreal
• The Ottawa games will be live-streamed on the Senators' website. Check with the other teams' websites, as they may be live-streaming as well.

 

 -  Defenseman Sam Sedley is participating in the same prospect tournament as Kidney and Shantz, but is on the Winnipeg Jets team. 

 

- The European leagues are just getting underway, with games being played in Russia, Finland, Czech Republic, and Denmark. Many of these leagues have more than one league going on at once, with a smaller set of teams. A big one is the EIHL, as 12 former Allen players are playing in that league of 10 teams. Games start tomorrow night in something called the Challenge Cup. 

 

DID YOU KNOW: The ECHL Stats post today is about the importance of playing well on the road. In 2025-26, Allen was decent on the road with a record of 19-14-3-0 (.569), but outstanding at home. The Americans' home record in 2024-25 was the worst in the league at 7-24-4-1 (.264). Last season, in one of the biggest turnarounds in league history, the Americans' home record was one of the best in the league at 24-9-3-0 (.708).

 

How important is it to play well on the road? Playing well on the road is a big key to success. Five ECHL teams had more than 20 road wins in 2025-26, including all of the Kelly Cup final four. The team’s road points percentage is in parentheses:

 

28-4-2-2: Kansas City (.833)* 

25-4-7-0: Fort Wayne (.792)*

24-8-4-2: Florida (.722)*

23-8-2-3: Toledo (.708)

22-12-1-1: Wheeling (.639)*

 

*Kelly Cup final four

Allen Adds Centers Riley Kidney and Zackary Shantz, Player Profiles with Videos, Roster Update, Martinson Comments and More

 

The Allen Americans added two centers to the roster yesterday: Riley Kidney and Zackary Shantz. Kidney was assigned to Allen by Belleville during last season's playoffs, tallying 3 points (2G, 1A) in 4 games against Kansas City. Shantz is a 20-year-old rookie who played on the WHL championship team (Everett Silvertips) last season and scored 65 points (27G, 38A) in 66 games. Player profiles are below.

 

- Here is the Allen Americans press release announcing Kidney and Shantz: https://allenamericans.com/news/2026/09/americans-add-two-key-players-up-front 

 

- The Allen Americans have now announced 17 players for the 2026-27 season. Here is the list with ages. The Americans will be one of the youngest teams in the league. 

Goalies

• Brett Mirwald: 22 (rookie) 

 

Forwards 

• Divyne Apollon: 21 (rookie)
• Spencer Asuchak: 34 (veteran)
• Cole Bishop: 21 (rookie)
• Chase Coughlin: 21 (rookie)
• Hank Crone: 28 
• Mathieu De St. Phalle: 26 
• Michael Gildon: 25 
• Riley Kidney: 23 
• Anthony Rinaldi: 31
• Zackary Shantz: 20 (rookie)  
• Lukas Sillinger: 25 
• Brayden Watts: 27 (veteran)

 

Defense

• Andre Anania: 23 
• Jackson Decker: 27 
• Quinn Warmuth: 26 
• Cal Uens: 21 (rookie) 

 

- AHL experience of the 17 players who have been announced thus far:

• 132 games - Kidney
• 64 games - Asuchak
• 25 games - De St. Phalle
• 6 games - Rinaldi
• 5 games - Crone
• 5 games - Sillinger
• 4 games - Watts
• 1 game - Anania 

 

PLAYER PROFILE - RILEY KIDNEY

Riley Kidney

Riley Kidney is a 23-year-old, 5'11", 190-pound, left-shot center from Halifax, Nova Scotia. He played his junior hockey in the QMJHL. In his final season in the QMJHL (2022-23), he averaged 1.83 points per game and ranked #2 in the league in assists (82) and #4 in points (110). He was drafted by the Montreal Canadiens in the second round (#63 overall) of the 2021 NHL draft. He turned pro in 2023-24 at 19 and played the entire season with the Laval Rocket, totaling 20 points (7G, 13A) in 66 games.

Riley is only 23 years old and will be starting his fourth professional season. Thus far in his pro career, Kidney has played in 132 AHL games (39 points, 11G, 28A) and 46 ECHL games (33 points, 11G, 22A). He has more AHL games played than the rest of the current roster combined. 

What do the scouting reports say about Kidney:

• Talented playmaker with good hands, high-pace scanning habits, and strong vision.
• A pass-first player who can pick apart opposing defenses.
• His transition game keeps the puck in the opponent's zone.
• He relies on his work ethic to outperform others.
• While his playmaking is his calling card, he has an accurate, deceptive shot.
• Great hockey IQ with the ability to use his creativity to find open teammates.

Steve Martinson's thoughts on Kidney:

• "I expect him to be a dominant player in our lineup 
• "His last two years in the QMJHL, he was #1 and #2 in the league in assists and had 100+ points. My philosophy is if you scored like that in the past, you can do it again."
• "I really liked his game in the playoffs last season. He couldn't skate for a month, came off an injury, and the second he got cleared, he played. That says a lot to me."
• "One thing I noticed when I first looked at his stats is he always played well in the playoffs when games tighten up."
• "Kidney is an AHL-level player and is an AHL free agent, so he could get called up by any AHL team." 

 

Here is a video interview from a few years ago, after Riley had been drafted by Montreal and traded midway through his last season in the QMJHL. You can hear him talk about his game in his own voice.

   

PLAYER PROFILE - ZACKARY SHANTZ

Zackary Shantz

 

Zackary Shantz is a 20-year-old, 5'11", 170-pound, right-shot center from Sucker Creek, Alberta. He played his junior hockey in the WHL and had a breakout season in 2025-26, helping his team (Everett Silvertips) win its first-ever WHL championship. Zakary had 65 points (28G, 38A) in 66 games. 

 

What do the scouting reports say about Shantz:

• He is the kind of player whose motor never turns off.
• Great work ethic; rarely gives up on plays.
• Brings noticeable intensity to the faceoff dot, which shows up in draws. 
• He has a shoot-first mentality and is good at getting pucks through traffic.
• A strong two-way game in the offensive zone. Patrolling empty space while also defending backwards as the third forward high in the zone. 

 

Steve Martinson's thoughts on Shantz:

• "I expect him to be one of the top rookies in the league."
• "The only guys on his championship team last season in Everett who had more points than Zack were all high NHL draft picks." 
• "One of the things I wanted to get better at this season is pursuing the puck when we don't have it, and Shantz's game will help with that. He is one of those types of forwards where puck pursuit is a strength."
• "He converted to center a long time ago and is good on faceoffs. I saw one report that his faceoff percentage last season was 57.1%.

 

Here are two get-to-know-you videos with Shantz. 

• The first is an on-ice interview after his team won its first WHL championship (May 16, 2026) since joining the WHL in 2003. What a great smile. 
• The second video honors his membership in Sucker Creek, Cree First Nation in northern Alberta, but it is also a Zackary hockey highlight reel. What struck me as I watched these highlights was how good he is around the net. Allen has had some very skilled indigenous hockey players over the years, Colton Yellow Horn, Judd Blackwater, Casey Pierro-Zabotel, and Eric Roy, to name a few. They may have another one in Shantz. 

 

 

 

 

OTHER COMMENTS

- I have had several questions about the defensemen who will end up on the roster and why more haven't been announced. In addition to the four that have been announced, Coach Martinson could get up to four NHL/AHL contracted defensemen assigned, and Sam Sedley could be in Allen to start the season. Martinson also has a vet spot to hire an experienced defenseman if needed. 

 

- I have also had questions about a Q & A session with Coach Martinson. Steve and Michelle will be in Allen the week of September 14 and plan to have one of these sessions that week. 

 

-  I have said this in the past as it relates to signing players. When recruiting, it is not as simple as finding the best 20 players you can find. The reality is finding the best players at the best value given the salary cap. The salary cap increased by $500 per week from last season. Spread over a 20-player roster, that is $25 per player, and you know the high-end players expect a raise of a lot more than $25. 

 

- What Coach Martinson does is allocate his money to the areas where he thinks he will get the least amount of help from the AHL. It is also important to Martinson to have top players who are not looking to move up to the AHL. There is a premium for guys who just want to play in Allen. You don't want to have your whole team looking to be called up, even if they are good enough to be called up.  

 

- Play has just started in Europe. There is a league called the Champions League that is made up of 24 top teams from 11 different leagues. This league goes on during each team's regular season. A team could play a regular season game one night and then travel to a different country to play a Champions League game. The Champions League ends in February with a 16-team playoff. That is a long, drawn-out way to say the Champions League just had its first games. HC Pilzen, which is the team Danny Katic plays for in the Czech Republic, beat a team from Sweden 4-0. And yes, Katic scored a goal. 

 

- Zackary Shantz committed to St. Cloud State University last February, but decided to turn professional and sign with the Allen Americans. Ironically, Coach Martinson played his collegiate hockey at St. Cloud State.

 

DID YOU KNOW: ECHL teams with the youngest and oldest average ages of players. Based on players announced thus far for the 2026-27 season:

 

Oldest

Wheeling - 27.67

Adirondack - 27.58

Florida - 27.36

 

Youngest

Bloomington - 24.08

Greensboro - 24.73

Allen - 24.76

 

Source: Elite Prospects