Roster Update, Training Camp News, Covid Protocol Impacts, Costello's Dual Roles and ECHL Top Scorers Not Returning

Allen's training camp this season is going to be different than in the past. The roster will be the players the Americans plan to start the season with. No camp fillers, tryout guys and players competing for jobs. It doesn't mean there won't be trades, players added or players released during training camp but for the most part this will be a training camp devoted to getting ready for the season. The full group will not be on the ice for the start of camp. The contract players from Seattle will be assigned later and the players Steve Martinson has recently signed and have not been announced may not arrive in time. No doubt these last few players will be big additions to the roster. 

- Martinson will have to find a couple of goalies for training camp with Frank Marotte attending AHL camp with the San Diego Gulls and the goalie from Seattle that is expected to be assigned to Allen at the Charlotte Checkers training camp. 

- Here is Allen's announced roster with nine forwards, eight defensemen and one goalie:

Goalies

#35 - Frank Marotte

Defensemen:

#5 - Phil Beaulieu

#16 - Darian Skeoch 

#18 - Kris Myllari

#20 - Ben Carroll

#24 - Nolan Kneen

#28 - Miles Liberati

#?? - Josh Burnside

 

Forwards

#8 - Jackson Leppard

#9 - Dawson Butt

#11 - Branden Troock

#13 - Chad Costello

#14 - Jackson Leef 

#15 - D-Jay Jerome

#25 - Kelly Bent

#26 - Spencer Asuchak 

#91 - Jared Bethune

- The recently released ECHL Covid protocol has already resulted in unvaccinated players opting out of the upcoming season. The rules make it very difficult financially for unvaccinated players given the salaries in the ECHL. They will have to pick up part of their rent and will also be required to cover 50% of their hotel costs because they must stay in a single room on the road. These costs are not considered salary so teams and/or fans can help unvaccinated players with these costs. It remains to be seen how this plays out. I asked coach Martinson about the ECHL Covid protocol, unvaccinated players and how it will impact the Americans and this is what he had to say,

 "We have lost one player and a second is seeking sponsorships from his hometown to cover costs. Two other players, who have had Covid, have opted to get vaccinated. If you have the budget and the player is not a rookie you can essentially just pay the player more to cover the cost. My frustration is we didn't miss a game last season without vaccinations and I don't believe in punishing unvaccinated players when we are 90% vaccinated. The science is very clear that it is better to have had Covid than to be vaccinated. These players are essentially the healthiest people on the planet. The more players we have that have had Covid the better off we are." 

  

- When the Allen Americans announced the return of Chad Costello last week coach Martinson mentioned Chad will be a co-captain along with Spencer Asuchak but will also take on additional responsibility as Allen's player/assistant coach. First and foremost, Chad will be a player but with Allen not having an assistant coach, Chad will be more involved with coach Martinson. Chad already has respect in the locker room and he will now get valuable coaching experience he may be able to use in his post-playing career. The rule in the ECHL is players can't get compensated for being an assistant coach, for Costello he is taking on this role to learn and also to help the team improve.

DID YOU KNOW: Only two of the top 15 in points in the ECHL last season have re-signed with their ECHL team. Of the other 13, eight are playing in Europe including Les Lancaster, Matt Register and Corey Mackin. Two have signed AHL deals and three are unsigned/unannounced. 

Big Week for the Allen Americans as Chad Costello Returns, Seattle Becomes Affiliate, Lancaster and Sheehy Off to Great Starts

 

- It has been a big week for the Allen Americans with the announcement that Chad Costello has returned after spending the last four seasons in Europe, playing three years in Germany and last season in Norway. Another big piece of the puzzle fell into place on Friday as it was announced the Americans would affiliate with the Seattle Kraken for the 2021-22 season.

 

- I am sure these two announcements were not a surprise to most Allen fans since Costello shared he was moving to North Texas a couple of months ago and Allen goalie, Frank Marotte, attended the Seattle Kraken training camp. So while these announcements were anti-climatic for many, they couldn’t be more important for the success of the Americans 2021-22 season. After talking to coach Martinson there will still be some surprises as he puts the final touches on the roster before the start of training camp later this week.

 

You could write a book about Chad Costello’s ECHL/Allen records but I will highlight just a few for the future Hall of Famer:

 

• In the history of  the ECHL the scoring champion has won the scoring title by more than 20 points just six times. Costello has three of the six including 2014-15 when he won by  the largest margin ever, 45 points. In that season Chad had more assists (84) than any other player in the league had points.
• Chad is #1 (125), #2 (122) and #3 (103) in Allen history in points in a single season. No other player has more than 88 points.
• Chad is #1 (89), #2 (84) and #3 (79) in Allen history in assists in a single season. No other player has more than 55 assists.
• In three seasons in Allen, Chad didn’t miss a single game, regular season or playoffs, playing in 276 straight games.
• Chad has won the ECHL MVP award three times (2012, 2016, 2017) and was selected by the players association (PHPA) as the MVP in 2015.

 

With all of his past accomplishments it is important to put the 2021-22 season in perspective as it relates to Costello. He is now 35 and coming off an injury that ended his season after just 11 games last year in Norway. With his skill, vision and leadership what he brings to the Allen Americans is immeasurable but everyone should tamp down expectations and just enjoy watching what I believe is the best player in the ECHL.

- The affiliation with Seattle is another important step for the Americans and is a unique opportunity given the Kraken is a first year team. Seattle has an AHL franchise that will not start operating until the 2022-23 season. For the 2021-22 season Seattle has a temporary AHL affiliation with the Charlotte Checkers. Charlotte also has an affiliation with the Florida Panthers (NHL) and Greenville Swamp Rabbits (ECHL). This startup situation could be a mixed bag for Allen. On the plus side, with Seattle not fielding their own AHL team, the Americans are slated to the get the #4 goalie in the Kraken system rather than the #5 goalie they would typically get assigned. The downside is Seattle will not be signing all of the depth players that would be at the ECHL level for their AHL team. It means the Americans will not get as many contract players, especially early in the season, but the players that are assigned to Allen will be prospects. As the Kraken sign players later in the season you could see more players sent to Allen. Steve Martinson always talks about how it takes time to develop a good working relationship with a new affiliate that benefits everyone. 

- I have had several questions about the fact the Charlotte Checkers have a dual affiliation (Seattle & Florida) and will be working with two ECHL teams (Allen & Greenville). With Charlotte providing players to two NHL teams could it mean more Allen players going to the Checkers and fewer coming to Allen?  I posed this question to coach Martinson and he expects if Charlotte needs players because they supply reinforcements to Florida they will come from Greenville and if the Checkers need players because they send players to Seattle they will come from Allen. The bottom line is he is not concerned the dual affiliation will have a negative impact.

- If you haven't seen the press release announcing the affiliation with Seattle here is the link. Seattle's GM Ron Francis had this to say, "The ECHL plays such a key role in the development of NHL players. This is a very important decision for the long-term success of our organization and we are excited to be engaged with a championship level organization in the Allen Americans."   https://allenamericans.com/media/americans-seattle-kraken-sign-nhl-echl-affiliation-for-2021-22-season/

 

- If you haven't been following how Allen players from last season are doing in Europe check out these great starts. Tyler Sheehy and Les Lancaster went to top leagues in Europe. Sheehy to the DEL in Germany and Lancaster to the Liiga in Finland. Lancaster leads his team (Ilves) and is tied for the league lead among defensemen with eight points (all assists) in six games. He is #1 in points per game at 1.33. Sheehy leads his team (Nurnberg) and the entire league with eight goals in eight games. It is clear in my mind that both of these players would have been successful in the AHL had they been given the opportunity. 

DID YOU KNOW: I posted on ECHL Stats recently the stats for the percentage of rookies to total players in the ECHL the last three seasons. Here is that information with a comparison to the percentages for the Allen Americans:

2021-22: 38.9% of all ECHL players and 50% of Allen players were rookies

2020-19: 37.3% of all ECHL players and 39% of Allen players were rookies

2019-20: 46.3% of all ECHL players and  24.4% of Allen players were rookies

Allen Americans Update - Roster, Affiliation, Costello, The Jacksons, Preseason, Europe and More

 - The pace has quickened with six player announcements in the last week. The Americans are now up to 14 players on the 2021-22 roster. As a comparison to other ECHL teams, Allen's 14 players announced is mid-pack with 11 teams announcing fewer and 12 teams announcing more players than the Americans. Fort Wayne leads with 21 players announced while Tulsa and Iowa have announced just five players. There are a lot of announcements yet to come with the first day of on ice training camp just two weeks away. 

- Here is Allen's announced roster with seven forwards, six defensemen and one goalie:

Goalies

#35 - Frank Marotte

Defensemen:

#5 - Phil Beaulieu

#16 - Darian Skeoch 

#18 - Kris Myllari

#20 - Ben Carroll

#24 - Nolan Kneen

#28 - Miles Liberati

 

Forwards

#8 - Jackson Leppard

#9 - Dawson Butt

#11 - Branden Troock 

#15 - D-Jay Jerome

#25 - Kelly Bent

#26 - Spencer Asuchak 

#?? - Jackson Leef

 

- There is nothing new (officially) on the Allen NHL/AHL affiliation for the upcoming season. There may be a clue, however, in that goalie Frank Marotte is on the Seattle Kraken training camp roster. The Seattle training camp opened yesterday with the first Kraken preseason game on Sunday against Vancouver. There are five goalies in camp. It may be just a coincidence that Marotte is attending an NHL training camp with Seattle but it may also be a tell on Allen's affiliation.

 

- I had a chance to talk to Chad Costello this week and he is continuing his preparation for the upcoming hockey season. He is training hard and it is clear he expects to be ready to play. It is impossible to overstate how important it would be if Chad would return to Allen for the 2021-22 season. 

 

- Here is a little info on the two Jackson's coming to Allen:

JACKSON LEEF - Jackson will be starting his sixth year as a pro hockey player. He won the Kelly Cup last season with the Fort Wayne Komets. Jackson grew up in Fort Wayne and is the son of Ron Leef, who played for Fort Wayne from 1981 to 1987. Ron Leef is #10 all-time in points for the Komets with 503 (212G, 291A) and is a member of the Komets Hall of Fame. He also played two games with the Dallas Black Hawks (CHL) before signing with Fort Wayne. Jackson Leef is also familiar with the DFW area as he played his junior hockey with the Texas Tornado (NAHL) winning the Robertson Cup in 2011-12. Jackson attended college at Westfield State University and served as captain of the team in 2016-17 when was selected as the Player of the Year in his conference. Here is a video from a couple of years ago with Jackson talking about his career: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A5us0SnKJgk

 

 

 JACKSON LEPPARD - Jackson is an ECHL rookie that played his junior hockey in the WHL where he had 115 points (49G, 66A) in 252 games. The 6'2" 200 pound left shot forward describes his game this way, "I am a power forward with lots of grit. I work hard in the corners and the d-zone. I have some skill and use my strength to get on the puck and hopefully put it in the net. As a bantam in 2014 his team won the Western Canada Bantam Championship and one of his teammates and good friend was Nolan Kneen. Here is a video of Leppard with some of his WHL highlights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oD_UKgyx1Sg

 

 

- I have had a few questions about what will be the COVID protocol for the 2021-22 Allen Americans season. I posed the question to team President Mike Waddell and while guidance is always subject to change here is what Mike had to say, "The ECHL is requiring all team personnel who engage with players to be vaccinated. Additional guidance is expected from the league in the next 7-10 days."

"Per COVID protocol for fans, the Allen Americans are planning to operate at 100% capacity in the Allen Event Center. There will be no mask or vaccination requirement."

"All ticketing will remain digital for the 2021-22 season."

"All Americans Team Store transactions will be cashless."

 

- Allen has announced 14 players thus far and true to form Steve Martinson continues to recruit players from the Western Hockey League (WHL). Eight of the 14 players announced played their junior hockey in the WHL (Asuchak, Carroll, Kneen, Skeoch, Troock, Leppard, Butt, Jerome).

 

- Some European leagues have started their season but most are still in preseason. There are several preseason tournaments in Europe so some leagues/teams get an early start. Off to great starts include Tyler Sheehy who has three goals in his first five games and Les Lancaster with three assists in his first three games. Alex Breton has not started playing yet but his Slovakian team, Banksa Bystrica, has an unusual schedule. It will play the first 22 games on the road, then 22 home games in its newly renovated rink. 

 

- Longtime ECHL coach Malcolm Cameron, who was in Wichita from 2016-19 is coaching the Glasgow Clan in Scotland this season and has recruited many players from his past including former Allen players Dyson Stevenson and Colton Yellow Horn. Here is a story about how Cameron put together the team in his first year in Europe and the impact of signing Dyson Stevenson: https://clanihc.com/post/news-coach-its-not-a-typical-malcolm-cameron-team/   

 

- If you saw the ECHL preseason schedule you noticed the Allen Americans will not play preseason games. The team is still in the process of planning the activities for preseason but there will be some kind of intrasquad game for fans to check out the team prior to the beginning of the regular season. Stay tuned.

 

DID YOU KNOW: The last two ECHL seasons have been difficult for fans and players alike. I posted this on my ECHL stats page recently and it really hit home how much impact COVID has had on professional hockey players at all levels but particularly the ECHL. In 2018-19 there were exactly 1000 players play at least one game in the ECHL. In the COVID shortened 2019-20 season that number was down to 870 players. In 2020-21 when so many ECHL teams opted out of the season and just 14 played, the number of players that found jobs was down to just 584. Let's hope the 2021-22 season will see a return to normal and all 27 teams will play the full 72 game schedule.   
 

Allen Americans News and Notes

 

I have been reminded several times lately, both subtly and not so subtly, it is time for me to start writing more blogs. I have been remiss because of a lack of information and lack of enthusiasm during this shortened off season. I will try to do better in September but be forewarned I plan to spend most of the month of October in Minnesota and North Dakota on an extended hunting trip with my lifelong friend and hunting buddy. At our age (mid 70s) you never know how many years you have left walking through pheasant, duck, goose and partridge habitat following a hunting dog. 

 

- It is now less than 50 days until 2021-22 opening night for the Allen Americans and there is still a lot to be accomplished. Only eight players have been announced but many more have been signed but not yet announced. 

 

- As a comparison to other ECHL teams, Allen's eight players announced is on the low side. Only five teams have announced fewer players than the Americans. Iowa has still not announced any players, while Tulsa and Utah have announced just three. At the other end of the spectrum is Fort Wayne (17), Atlanta (15) and Norfolk (14).

- Here is Allen's announced roster. I would estimate there are another 7-8 players signed but not yet announced:

Defensemen:

#16 - Darian Skeoch 

#18 - Kris Myllari

#20 - Ben Carroll

#24 - Nolan Kneen

#28 - Miles Liberati

 

Forwards

#11 - Branden Troock 

#25 - Kelly Bent

#26 - Spencer Asuchak

 

- Every ECHL team with the exception of Allen now has a NHL/AHL affiliation. Steve Martinson assures me the Americans will have an affiliation for the 2021-22 season with all of the details still being worked out. Stay tuned.

 

- The question I get most often other than affiliation news is the status of Chad Costello for the upcoming season. Nothing new to report other than what I included in the blog a month ago. Chad has moved to Texas and his quote on playing is the best indication of his plans, "After rehabbing my knee and starting to train hard all I can say is I am all in to play again next season."  

- The ECHL Board of Governors (BOG) will meet in Miami this week (8th & 9th) and one of the agenda items will be COVID protocols for the upcoming season. If you follow other North American hockey leagues and teams the rules are as strict mandatory vaccinations for everyone including fans to less restrictive rules where the protocol has no mandatory vaccination requirements. 

- Former Allen forward Colton Yellow Horn has signed for yet another season in yet another league in yet another country. The 34 year old will play the 2021-22 season for the Glasgow Clan in the EIHL. Colton and Jordie Benn, who recently signed with the Minnesota Wild for 2021-22, are the only players from Allen's inaugural season still playing professional hockey.

 I saw this about Yellow Horn posted on the Hockey Indigenous Twitter page, "Since leaving North America after the 2012-13 season and continuing his hockey journey in Europe/Asia, Colton Yellow Horn (Blackfoot) has played for nine teams, in seven different countries, in seven different leagues." Colton's business card should read, "Have skates, will travel." Colton's stops in North America included Stockton, Elmira, Allen, Ontario and Manchester. It is quite a resume for a great player.

Other than Chad Costello's three seasons in Allen, fans sometimes forget Yellow Horn is the Americans all time single season leader in points (88) and assists (55). Colton is one of 10 players in Allen history with 30 goals in a season. He scored 33 goals in 2010-11. 

 

- Dyson Stevenson will be teammates with Yellow Horn this season with the Glasgow Clan. It was just announced that Dyson will head to Europe for the first time in his career. He was recruited by Clan coach, Malcolm Cameron, who is in his first season in Glasgow. Cameron coached Stevenson in juniors (WHL - Regina) and was also the coach in Wichita when Dyson played for the Thunder. 

 

- Dyson Stevenson is the 13th player from Allen's 2020-21 ending roster that will play in Europe in 2021-22. Here is the list:

Corey Mackin and Chad Butcher - Sweden (HC Vita Hasten)

Matt Register and Josh Lammon - Wales (Cardiff Devils)*

Scott Conway and Sam Ruopp - Northern Ireland (Belfast Giants)*

Les Lancaster - Finland (Ilves)

Steve Owre - France (Cergy-Pontoise)

Tyler Sheehy - Germany (Nurnberg Ice Tigers)

Collin Shirley - Poland (Cracovia Krakow)

C.J. Motte - England (Coventry Blaze)*

Jake Paterson - Norway (Sparta Sarpsborg)

Dyson Stevenson - Scotland (Glasgow Clan)*

*These six players will see each other frequently as they all play in the same league (EIHL). Other former Allen Americans playing in the EIHL in 2021-22 include Wade MacLeod, Jared VanWormer, Dallas Ehrhardt, Greg Chase, Tanner Eberle, Alex Ranger and Ben Wilson.

- Here are some other former Allen players that have recently signed for the 2021-22 season: 

Kayle Doetzel - Hungary 

Dante Salituro - France (teammate with Jonathan Lessard)

J. C. Campagna - Toledo

Josh Atkinson - Hungary 

Cody Corbett - Kalamazoo

Alex Breton - Slovakia

Nick Boka - Rochester (AHL)

Aaron Dell - Buffalo (NHL)

Brett Pollock - Sweden

Vincent Arseneau - Abbotsford (AHL)

 

- The Adirondack Thunder have announced the signing of 11 players and their average age is 29.18. The Maine Mariners have announced the signing of 10 players and their average age is 24.00.

DID YOU KNOW: I post each morning on my ECHL Stats and Information page (Facebook and Twitter) stats that I find interesting. I recently posted this one which says a lot about both the Allen Americans style of play and the greatness of Chad Costello. Keep in mind when you look at the stats below that every season Chad played in the ECHL he led the league in average points per game and by a wide margin. FYI, Chad played in Europe since 2016-17 and was injured in 2013-14. This list shows the impact Chad has had on his ECHL teams.

ECHL leaders in average points per game, last 10 seasons, (minimum 35 games played):

 

1.15 - Anthony Beauregard, Wichita, 2020-21

1.49 - Tyler Sheehy, Allen, 2019-20

1.47 - Reid Gardiner, Kalamazoo, 2018-19

1.37 - Caleb Herbert, Greenville, 2017-18

1.69 - Chad Costello, Allen, 2016-17

1.43 - Chad Costello, Allen, 2015-16

1.74 - Chad Costello, Allen, 2014-15

1.26 - Mickey Lang, Orlando, 2013-14

1.61 - Chad Costello, Colorado, 2012-13

1.62 - Chad Costello, Colorado, 2011-12

  

The Allen Americans Roster - Past, Present and Future, Including a Chad Costello Update

If you don't keep up with the happenings around the ECHL and the Allen Americans it is easy to lose track of all the activity. Here is my list, in no particular order, of some of the activity over the last couple of weeks.

 

- Scott Conway and Sam Ruopp became the 10th and 11th players from Allen's playoff roster to sign in Europe for the 2021-22 season. They signed with the same team (Belfast Giants) in the EIHL. They are the third duo from Allen to sign in Europe. Matt Register and Josh Lammon signed with the Cardiff Devils (Wales). Corey Mackin and Chad Butcher signed with HC Vita Hasten (Sweden).

- Allen added two defensemen to the 2021-22 roster last week, Miles Liberati and Ben Carroll. They join Spencer Asuchak as the players announced thus far. Liberati didn't play last season but in 2019-20, playing for the Tulsa Oilers, he was the second leading scorer in the ECHL among defensemen with 46 points (11G, 35A) in 56 games. Ben Carroll returns to Allen after a very successful rookie season. He played in more games (65) than any of the 26 different rookies that saw action for the Americans last season. If there was a team award for unsung hero, Carroll would be the winner. He became part of Allen's top defensive pairing with Les Lancaster and took on more responsibility as the season progressed.

 

- This is the time of year fans are anxious to find out which players from last season have been signed for next season. There is a way to make an educated guess by looking at Allen's qualifying offers and see what players didn't receive one. That is because if a player was signed prior to the final date for qualifying offers (July 23) they don't need to be qualified. Here are some of players that were on the season ending roster that did not get one of the eight qualifying offers. What that means is these players are either signed by Allen for next season or they are free agents and can sign with any team. Since these players have not been announced as signed elsewhere the odds are they are not going to Europe and have signed with Allen. The one exception, that doesn't make sense to me, is Collin Shirley since he is caught in what I call the "rookie trap" which means he didn't play 25 games last season (he played 19) so he is considered a rookie for all of the 2021-22 season. Rookie salaries are capped between $500-$585 per week.   

Zane Franklin

Darian Skeoch

Kris Myllari

Nolan Kneen

Collin Shirley 

- Co-captain Dyson Stevenson was on the season ending roster but did not receive a qualifying offer. His situation is different because he is a veteran. Teams can only buy time by qualifying veterans because if the vet doesn't sign a qualifying offer by August 1 they become a free agent. For that reason, teams rarely qualify veterans. Stevenson is looking for an AHL deal so whether he returns to Allen remains to be seen. He is now a free agent so he can sign with any ECHL team though you have to assume if he plays in the ECHL next season it would be in Allen.

 

- Of all the questions I get asked every off season the most frequent is about the possibility of Chad Costello returning to Allen. Chad's 2020-21 season in Norway was over early with a season ending knee injury. Chad had played just 11 games for his new team (Stavanger) and was off to a great start with 14 points when he was injured on December 3. At this point it is an unknown if, when or where Chad will play in 2021-22. If you are an Allen fan his comments to me when I contacted him in Iowa a couple of days ago contains some hope. Here are his comments in his own words, "My son has a tournament in Minnesota next weekend and we are planning on moving to Texas after that. My knee is getting better and I have been able to start training pretty hard. After rehabbing my knee and starting to train hard all I can say is I am all in to play again next season." This is definitely a stay tuned story. 

- Many of the players Steve Martinson is recruiting are waiting to sign because they are looking for AHL deals. Allen will be their first choice if they don't sign with an AHL team. Not having an affiliation can hurt in recruitment. In the past, having slots in the Wild training camp or prospect tournament was a great recruiting tool but not the case this season. I asked Martinson this morning about the status of an affiliation and he said, "Hoping to square that up this week. Had to wait for NHL free agency to settle down."

 

- Speaking of recruitment I love this stat which was posted on my ECHL Stats and Information page recently. It should be part of any pitch when recruiting offensive defensemen to Allen. Since 2016-17 just four ECHL players have a combined points per game average above .800 (minimum 100 games). All you can say is offensive defensemen thrive in Steve Martinson's system.

.858 - Les Lancaster 

.836 - Matt Register

.825 - Alex Breton

.810 - David Makowski  

DID YOU KNOW: Just 1/2 of a percent of all ECHL players played in 72 regular season games in 2020-21. Now this is an elite group.

584 players played at least one game in the ECHL during the 2020-21 season. Only six of 14 teams played a full 72 game schedule and just three players played in all 72 games. Congrats and hats off to these three Ironmen:

 

Aaron Luchuk - Orlando

Les Lancaster- Allen

Tristan Langan - Orlando

 

Luchuk and Lancaster were both named to the All-ECHL first team. Luchuk was the ECHL scoring leader (74 points) and MVP finalist. Lancaster led all defensemen in scoring (64 points), was Defenseman of the Year and runner-up MVP.

 

News and Notes - Roster Update, Spencer Asuchak Returns, AEC Gets a New Name, Former Players Headed to Europe, ECHL Attendance and More

 It is that quiet time of year if you are an Allen Americans hockey fan but it is now less than 100 days until hockey returns. I had a few items of interest so thought with rain getting in the way of the morning bike ride it is time to empty the news and notes bin.

 Here is the Allen Americans playoff roster with an update on the players that have already signed for the 2021-22 season and those whose rights revert back to other teams:

 

Goalies 

#31 - C.J. Motte - signed in Great Britain (England) with Coventry Blaze

#34 - Jake Paterson - signed in Norway (Sparta)

#35 - Frank Marotte

 

Defensemen

#4 - Terrance Amorosa - signed AHL deal with Laval Rocket

#5 - Phil Beaulieu

#7 - Sam Ruopp

#14 - Les Lancaster - signed in Finland to a two year deal with Ilves which means Lynx in Finnish. Lancaster will play the top league in Finland (Liiga) and it is one of the six European leagues that count toward veteran status for the ECHL.

#16 - Darian Skeoch 

#18 - Kris Myllari

#20 - Ben Carroll

#43 - Matt Register - signed in Great Britain with the Cardiff Devils which is in Wales. The league is the EIHL (Elite Ice Hockey League). This league is the most similar to the style of play you see in the ECHL. The EIHL relies heavily on import players with 14 allowed to dress for each game.

Forwards

#8 - Steve Owre - signed in France with Cergy-Pontoise

#9 - Brett Neumann

#11 - Collin Shirley

#15 - Corey Mackin - signed in Sweden (HC Vita Hasten), ECHL rights revert to Reading

#17 - Colby McAuley - rights revert to Idaho

#19 - Chad Butcher - signed in Sweden with HC Vita Hasten

#22 - Tyler Sheehy - signed in Germany's top league (DEL) with Nurnberg Ice Tigers

#26 - Spencer Asuchak - re-signed with the Allen Americans    

#27 - Sam Laberge - rights revert to Adirondack

#40 - Josh Lammon - signed in Great Britain (Wales)

#44 - Zane Franklin 

#71 - Dyson Stevenson  

#77 - Scott Conway

 

- Spencer Asuchak kept up what has become a tradition when he was announced on Saturday as the first player signed for the 2021-22 Allen Americans roster. Asuchak has so many career records there are too many to recap. Most impressive is his longevity. This will be Spencer's ninth season in Allen. Only four players have played more than four seasons with the Americans:

9 - Spencer Asuchak

6 - Gary Steffes

5 - Jarret Lukin

5 - Brian McMillin  

- Asuchak is the all-time leader in regular season games (413) and playoff games (90) and is one of six players that won three championships in Allen. The others are Greger Hanson, Trevor Ludwig, Tyler Ludwig, Brian McMillin, and Jamie Schaafsma.

 

- When I talked to Steve Martinson earlier this week he shared that he has several other players signed for next season that will be announced over time. Some are players returning from last season and some new players. The player announcement next week will be of interest to Allen fans. 

 

- There are more Allen players that have signed in Europe but have not been announced in addition to the nine that have already been announced. Two of the unannounced players have signed with the same team in Great Britain (EIHL).  

 

- There is nothing new regarding an affiliation for next season. Most NHL/AHL teams wait until after the NHL draft to see what their rosters look like before talking about new affiliations. 

 

- Here are some former Allen Americans that will be playing in Europe in 2021-22:

Jack Combs - Germany

Kale Kerbashian - Denmark

Jonathan Lessard - France

Alex Lavoie - Sweden

Josh Atkinson - Hungary

Tanner Eberle - England

Braylon Shmyr - France  

Gabe Gagne - Norway

Alex Breton - Slovakia

 

- In Allen Americans franchise history (since 2009-10) there have been 106 defensemen play at least one game. Just three are in the top 10 all time in games played, goals, assists, points, average points per game. penalty minutes and won championships in Allen. These three all time, all around greats are Aaron Gens, Tyler Ludwig and David Makowski. 

- The City of Allen has sold the naming rights to the Allen Event Center and the AEC will be called the "Credit Union of Texas Arena" starting this fall. The Sponsorship Agreement is for eight years with a total cost of $2,275,000. If you are interested in the details here is a link: https://allen.novusagenda.com/AgendaPublic/CoverSheet.aspx?ItemID=9575&MeetingID=985

 

- The AEC is also undergoing some upgrades with a new sound system and video boards. I heard there will be five video boards in the arena. These upgrades will be completed prior to the start of the hockey season.

- The Dallas Stars extended their affiliation with the Idaho Steelheads for two more years. The Steelheads have served as the ECHL affiliate of the Dallas Stars continuously since 2005-06 as well as during the 2003-04 season. A total of 11 former Idaho Steelheads have played for the Dallas Stars. 

- We recently got home after spending a week in Iowa visiting friends and family. While in Iowa I had a chance to stop by the Iowa Heartlanders front office and get a tour of their new arena. My thanks to David Fine, the Director of Communications and Broadcaster for taking time out of his schedule to visit with me and to Molly Uphoff and Tysen VanDraska for the first class tour of the Xtream Arena. It would be a great road trip for Allen fans when the Americans visit the Heartlanders which will probably be in 2022-23. Everything is located in a 180 acre mixed use development (Iowa River Landing) with hotels, restaurants and shopping all within  walking distance from the arena. 

 

DID YOU KNOW: A breakdown of average ECHL attendance for the COVID restricted 2020-21 season:

 

2 teams averaged over 3000

3493 - Florida

3165 - Jacksonville 

 

5 teams averaged between 2000-3000

2902 - Tulsa

2846 - Fort Wayne

2778 - Rapid City

2464 - Orlando

2443 - South Carolina

 

6 teams averaged between 1000-2000

1971 - Kansas City

1859 - Allen

1837 - Greenville

1791 - Indy

1760 - Utah

1689 - Wichita 

 

1 team averaged under 1000

987 - Wheeling 

 

League wide average was 2275. Average attendance in the shortened 2019-20 season was 4327.

   

 

Allen Roster Update, Protected List, Season Ending List, ECHL Most Playoff Series Won List and More

 I had a chance to check in with Steve Martinson yesterday to get an update on the recruiting process and he is just starting to reach out to players with offers for next season. The season ending roster is due Thursday and the first day to sign players is Friday so this will be a busy week.

 

 Here is the Allen Americans playoff roster with an update on the players that have already signed for the 2021-22 season:

 

Goalies 

#31 - C.J. Motte

#34 - Jake Paterson - signed in Norway

#35 - Frank Marotte

 

Defensemen

#4 - Terrance Amorosa 

#5 - Phil Beaulieu

#7 - Sam Ruopp

#14 - Les Lancaster - signed in Finland to two year deal

#16 - Darian Skeoch 

#18 - Kris Myllari

#20 - Ben Carroll

#43 - Matt Register - signed in Great Britain (Wales)

Forwards

#8 - Steve Owre - signed in France

#9 - Brett Neumann

#11 - Collin Shirley

#15 - Corey Mackin - signed in Sweden, ECHL rights revert to Reading

#17 - Colby McAuley - rights revert to Idaho

#19 - Chad Butcher - signed in Sweden

#22 - Tyler Sheehy

#26 - Spencer Asuchak    

#27 - Sam Laberge - rights revert to Adirondack

#40 - Josh Lammon

#44 - Zane Franklin 

#71 - Dyson Stevenson  

#77 - Scott Conway

 

- Have had a couple of questions about the Allen Americans protected list which is made up of three goalies, 10 defensemen and 14 forwards. Here is the list:

Jake Paterson, C.J. Motte, Frank Marotte, Sam Ruopp, Lester Lancaster, Kris Myllari, Ben Carroll, Terrance Amorosa, Nolan Kneen, Will Lochead, Turner Ottenbreit, Miles Liberati, Collin Shirley, Dyson Stevenson, Zane Franklin, Spencer Asuchak, Josh Lammon, Chad Butcher, Scott Conway, Steve Owre, Darian Skeoch, Alex Lavoie, Mason Bergh, Jacob Doty, Brett Pollock, Jordan Topping, Gabriel Gagne.

Miles Liberati's rights were obtained from Tulsa in a trade that sent goalie Hayden Hawkey to Tulsa. Mason Bergh is a player Martinson claimed off of waivers.

 Players like Beaulieu, Neumann and Sheehy are not on the protected list because they were on AHL deals and assigned to Allen. 

 

- The season ending list/roster that is due on Thursday (3:00 pm EDT) is limited to 20 players and the players on the list must have signed an ECHL contract in 2020-21. That will eliminate Doty, Pollock, Topping  and Gagne. 

 

- Steve Martinson pointed out to me the rookie rule, where salary is capped for players that have played less than 25 games, will be an issue in re-signing players like Sam Ruopp and Collin Shirley. The CBA limits rookie maximum salary to $585 per week. They can do much better by going to Europe.

 

- The urgency will start quickly because Martinson will have until July 23 to sign players from the season ending roster. On the 23rd he can give qualifying offers to up to eight players from the season ending roster which protects their rights. Those that don't get a qualifying offer (and have not been signed) become free agents. 

 

- No news on an affiliation for the 2021-22 season.  Martinson emphasized it is important to get the right affiliation that works for everyone. He is confident he will be able find an affiliate for next season.

    

- I was looking at the final stats from the playoffs and a few stood out to me. Fort Wayne played a total of 64 games this season in winning its first Kelly Cup, 51 regular season and 13 playoff games. In Allen's two Kelly Cups it played 96 games (72+24) in 2015 and 97 games (72+24) in 2016.

 

- Allen had the best shooting percentage in the playoffs (11.4%) and also the best average goals per game (3.57). What was Allen's downfall was not being able to hold on to a lead. The Americans scored first in six of its seven playoff games but only won three of the six. 

 

- For all eight playoff teams the combined record when leading after the second period was 21-4. The Allen Americans record was 2-2. The Americans were almost unbeatable during the regular season with a second period lead (30-2-2-0). Blowing a 4-1 lead at home with 12 minutes left in game two against Fort Wayne will always be seen as the single period that cost Allen its third Kelly Cup.

 

- Even though he only played in seven playoff games, compared to 13 for Fort Wayne and South Carolina, Les Lancaster led all defensemen in goals (3) and was tied for the lead in points (7). 

 

 

OTHER COMMENTS

- When Fort Wayne won its first ever Kelly Cup last Friday, there were three former Allen Americans as part of the celebration. Zach Pochiro was Fort Wayne's second leading goal scorer during the regular season (14 goals in 32 games), Nick Boka was the Komet's Defenseman of the Year and goalie Justin Kapelmaster was the goalie of record in Allen's loss to Fort Wayne in game two of its series when the Americans were leading 4-1 in the third period and lost the game 5-4 in overtime. That third period and overtime was Kaplemaster's only appearance in the playoffs. He played 23 minutes and stopped all eight shots he faced. Congrats to Zach, Nick and Justin.

  

 

DID YOU KNOW: Here is yesterday's ECHL stats post that lists ECHL teams with the most playoff series wins since 2015 when the Central Hockey League (CHL) teams joined the ECHL. If you include the two years Steve Martinson coached the Americans in the CHL his series record in Allen is 16-3, to go along with four championships. 

ECHL teams with the most playoff series wins since 2015. Kelly Cup championships in parenthesis: 

 

10 - Allen (2)

10 - South Carolina (0)

8 - Colorado (2)

8 - Toledo (0)

7 - Florida (0)

7 - Fort Wayne (1)

4 - Newfoundland (1)

4 - Manchester (0)

3 - Wheeling (0)

3 - Adirondack (0)