The Charlotte Checkers have agreed to terms with forwards Kyle Hagel and Alex Aleardi.
Hagel, who has totaled 25 points (7g, 18a) and 635 penalty minutes in 201 career AHL games, has agreed to an AHL deal. The native of Hamilton, Ontario, spent the 2013-14 season with the Portland Pirates, logging five points (0g, 5a) and 162 penalty minutes in 38 games.
Prior to turning pro, Hagel spent four years at Princeton University, where he scored 24 points (12g, 12a) and amassed 80 penalty minutes in his collegiate career. He then spent most of the next two seasons in the ECHL before landing with the Rockford IceHogs full time in the 2010-11 season, reaching career highs in games played (77) and penalty minutes (245). The 29-year-old brings a strong physical presence and experience to a potentially young roster.
Aleardi, a right wing, has agreed to terms on a two-way AHL/ECHL deal. He started the 2013-14 season in the AHL with the Springfield Falcons, tallying 16 points (7g, 9a) in 41 games, before joining the Evansville Icemen of the ECHL, where he had 23 points (14g, 9a) in 23 games. He spent five years in the OHL and totaled 227 points (104g, 123a) in 321 games, including a career high 71 points (27g, 44a) in 2012-13 for the Plymouth Whalers and Windsor Spitfires.
The 5’ 9” forward had a strong finish offensively in the ECHL last season, averaging a point per game through the final 23 games. The 21-year-old will attend the Carolina Hurricanes Development Camp in Raleigh from July 21-26 and look to rejoin former Plymouth Whaler teammates Austin Levi and Beau Schmitz on the Checkers. Aleardi also played alongside fellow development camp participant Alex Nedeljkovic in Plymouth.
