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Panthers Assign Four to Pirates

September 22, 2015 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Portland Pirates News Release


Portland, ME - The Florida Panthers, NHL affiliate of the Portland Pirates, announced the reassignment of four players from the Panthers to the Pirates.

Among those reassigned were forwards Wade Megan and Chase Balisy, defenseman Yann Sauve, and goalie Colin Stevens.

Megan, a 6-foot-1, 190 pound center from Canton, New York, enters his third full season of professional hockey.

Megan has split the last two seasons between the AHL's San Antonio Rampage and the ECHL's Cincinnati Cyclones.

Last season, Megan played 59 regular season games with San Antonio and scored eight goals and five assists for 13 points. He also played in three Calder Cup Playoff games for the Rampage.

With Cincinnati in 2014-15, Megan played five games and scored four goals and three assists for seven points.

Drafted in the Fifth Round (138th Overall) of the 2009 NHL Entry Draft by the Panthers, Megan played four years of NCAA Division I Men's Hockey for the Boston University Terriers before turning pro.

The 25 year-old was the first player to sign an AHL contract with the Pirates under the new affiliation with Florida on June 9.

Balisy, a 5-foot-11, 180 pound left wing from Rancho Santa Margarita, California, began his pro career last season with the AHL's St. John's IceCaps. In 73 games, he was the IceCaps' second leading scorer with 21 goals and 23 assists for 44 points. He was the only IceCaps player to top 20 goals last season. The 23 year-old finished tied for ninth in the AHL in rookie scoring and tied for fifth among AHL rookies in goals.

Originally drafted in the Sixth Round (170th Overall) of the 2011 NHL Entry Draft by the Nashville Predators, Balisy played four seasons of NCAA Division I Men's Hockey with the Western Michigan University Broncos, serving as captain in his senior season, 2013-14. At Western Michigan, he played in 161 games, scoring 49-80-129.

Prior to that, Balisy spent two seasons in the US National Team Development Program, playing for the USNTDP Under-18 Team in both the NAHL and the USHL.

Balisy signed an Entry Level Contract with the Panthers on June 1.

Sauve, 6-foot-3, 218 pound defenseman from Rigaud, Quebec, played a total of 25 games in the AHL last season with three teams, combining for one goal and three assists for four points. Sauve played in 17 games for the Springfield Falcons and four games each for the St. John's IceCaps and Providence Bruins in 2014-15.

Sauve also played 13 games last season for the ECHL's Orlando Solar Bears, scoring two goals and two assists for four points.

Selected by the Vancouver Canucks in the Second Round (41st Overall) of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft, Sauve has played eight games in the NHL, all with Vancouver. He skated in five games during the 2010-11 season and three more in 2013-14.

The 25 year-old Sauve has played a total of 221 AHL games over his five year pro career, scoring eight goals, 35 assists, and 43 points. He has had AHL stops with the Manitoba Moose (2010-11), the Chicago Wolves (2011-13), and the Utica Comets (2013-14).

Prior to turning pro, Sauve played four seasons with the QMJHL's Saint John Sea Dogs. He signed an AHL contract with Portland on July 16.

Stevens, a 6-foot-1, 175 pound goalie from Niskauyuna, New York, begins his pro career this season. In his senior season with the Union College Dutchmen, the 22 year-old posted a 16-15 record, a 2.31 GAA, a 0.920 save percentage, and two shutouts.

The prior season, the undrafted free agent who signed with the Florida Panthers on March 20, 2015, backstopped Union to its first NCAA Division I Men's Hockey National Championship. Stevens holds the school record for career wins (53) and career shutouts (11). He was named ECAC Goalie of the Year in 2013-14 and was a Mike Richter Award finalist in 2014-15.

In addition today, the Panthers reassigned goalie Samuel Montembeault to the QMJHL's Blainville-Boisbriand Armada. Forwards Rob Flick and John McFarland, as well as defenseman Sena Acoltase, were released from training camp. All three are eligible to be reassigned to Portland if they clear NHL waivers.

The Panthers now have 43 players remaining in their training camp and will play a preseason game against the Dallas Stars at the BB&T Center in Sunrise, Florida tonight.

Players report to Portland Pirates Training Camp on Sunday, September 27. The first on-ice session will be held at the OA Sports Center in Saco on Tuesday, September 29. More details about training camp will be released later today.

The Portland Pirates begin their first season as the top affiliate of the NHL's Florida Panthers in 2015-16! The Pirates 23rd AHL home opener is set for Saturday, October 17 at Cross Insurance Arena against the Hershey Bears! Game time is 7:00 p.m. Home opening weekend continues with another game against Hershey on Sunday, October 18 at 3:00 p.m. Full-Season, Half-Season and 10 Game Season Ticket plans are on sale right now! Log onto portlandpirates.com or call 207-PIRATES to lock in your seats today!

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