NEWS
Canes Acquire Cliff Pu From Sabres: The Hurricanes made waves during a traditionally calm stretch of the offseason last week by dealing Jeff Skinner to the Buffalo Sabres. In return Carolina acquired a trio of draft picks along with forward prospect Cliff Pu. A third-round pick by Buffalo in 2016, Pu turned 20 earlier this summer, meaning the Ontario native will likely battle for a spot on the Checkers roster to start his pro career come October.Checkers Announce Training Camp Schedule: Mark it down on your calendar, hockey returns to Bojangles’ Coliseum on Sep. 21 as the Checkers open up training camp. Like last season, the entirety of camp will take place at the Checkers’ home rink, while info regarding media availability and sessions open to the public will be announced at a later date. Charlotte will also have a pair of preseason contests to prepare for the 2018-19 campaign, visiting the Lehigh Valley Phantoms on Sep. 28 and 29.
Checkers Sign Zach Nastasiuk To AHL Deal: The Checkers continue to add their stable as the season grows closer, inking a deal with 23-year-old forward Zach Nastasiuk. The Ontario native has spent the majority of his three pro seasons in the ECHL, but has logged substantial time in the AHL for a perennially good Grand Rapids team, making him an option for a midseason ECHL call-up should he not make the Checkers out of camp.
Platzer, McCarron Sign AHL Contracts: In more organizational depth news, the Checkers added 23-year-old forward Kyle Platzer and 23-year-old defenseman Patrick McCarron to AHL contracts. Platzer, a fourth-round pick in 2013, has played nearly all of his first three pro seasons with Edmonton’s AHL affiliates in Oklahoma City and Bakersfield and set a new career high last season with eight goals in 44 games. Platzer also appeared at the ECHL level for the first time last season and stood out offensively for the Wichita Thunder. McCarron, on the other hand, is coming off a rookie season that saw him stand tall on the blue line for the ECHL’s Toledo Walleye. A product of Cornell, McCarron has also made four AHL appearances with the Grand Rapids Griffins.
Ryan Warsofsky Named Assistant Coach: The Checkers will have a new assistant coach for just the third time in franchise history this season as Carolina hired Ryan Warsofsky to join head coach Mike Vellucci behind the bench. The 30-year-old Warsofsky is coming off two successful seasons as head coach of the ECHL’s South Carolina Stingrays, going 88-44-10-2 during his tenure and making a Kelly Cup Final appearance in 2017. In an interview with Voice of the Checkers Jason Shaya, Vellucci stated that he was “very excited” about how his staff is shaping up for this season and pointed to Warsofsky’s consistently strong penalty kill as a key factor in bringing the young coach into the fold.
Registration For Mini Checkers Program At XI Now Open: The Checkers are partnering with Extreme Ice Center to continue to grow youth hockey in the region. The Mini Checkers will consist of 6U and 8U programs and all participants will receive jerseys, a t-shirt and a free ticket to the Checkers’ home opener.
Prospect Spotlight: Cliff Pu
Whatever Happened To: Mark Flood
