Anaheim Ducks Sign Mason Mctavish, Olen Zellweger and Sasha Pastujov to Three-Year Entry-Level Contracts
August 13, 2021 - American Hockey League (AHL)
San Diego Gulls News Release
SAN DIEGO - The Anaheim Ducks announced today that the National Hockey League (NHL) club has signed center Mason McTavish, defenseman Olen Zellweger and right wing Sasha Pastujov to three-year entry-level contracts.
McTavish, 18 (1/30/03), spent the 2020-21 season with Olten of the Swiss League (Switzerland's second division), scoring 9-2=11 points with a +4 rating and six penalty minutes (PIM) in 13 regular season games to lead all players 19-and-younger in points-per game (.85) and co-lead in goals. The 6-1, 207-pound forward also scored 2-5=7 points in four playoff games, recording a point in each of his four contests.
Selected by Anaheim in the first round (third overall) of the 2021 NHL Draft, McTavish was named to the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) Second All-Rookie Team in 2019-20 after ranking second in rookie scoring with 29-13=42 points in 57 games with the Peterborough Petes, leading 2021 draft eligible players in scoring, goals and points-per game (.74). He ranked third among Peterborough leaders in goals and was sixth in scoring, while also netting the most goals by a Petes rookie since 2009-10 (Matt Puempel, 33).
A Canadian national born in Zurich, Switzerland, McTavish helped Canada to a gold medal at the 2021 U-18 World Championship, scoring 5-6=11 points in seven tournament games. He also represented Canada at the 2019 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, recording 2-1=3 points in six games.
Zellweger, 17 (9/10/03), ranked fourth among all Western Hockey League (WHL) defensemen in points per game (1.18) after scoring 2-11=13 points with a +5 rating in 11 games in the shortened 2020-21 campaign with the Everett Silvertips. The 5-10, 175-pound defenseman was one of six WHL blueliners to record an assist per game (1.0). In 70 career WHL games with Everett, he has earned 4-21=25 points with a +25 rating and 10 PIM.
Selected by Anaheim in the second round (34th overall) of the 2021 NHL Draft, Zellweger registered 2-10=12 points with a +20 rating and eight penalty minutes (PIM) in 58 games with the Silvertips in 2019-20 as a rookie, ranking 14th among WHL rookie defensemen in scoring. A native of Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta, Zellweger helped Canada to a gold medal at the 2021 U-18 World Championship, ranking tied for the tournament lead among defensemen with 1-7=8 points with a +8 rating in seven tournament games.
Pastujov, 18 (7/15/03), led USA Hockey's National Team Development Program's (NTDP) U-18 team in scoring (30-35=65), goals and assists, and ranked third with a +20 rating in 41 games in 2020-21. He also set the NTDP's all-time record with a 21-game point streak from Dec. 16, 2020-Mar. 27, 2021 (14-23=37, +16). The 6-0, 184-pound forward combined for 44-71=115 points with a +20 rating with the NTDP U-18 and U-17 teams from 2019-21, ranking 11th all-time in program history in points per game (1.28).
Selected by Anaheim in the third round (66th overall) of the 2021 NHL Draft, the Bradenton, Fla. native led Team USA in scoring (5-3=8) at the 2021 U-18 World Championship and also won a silver medal at the 2019 U-17 World Hockey Challenge, tying for the tournament lead in assists (7). His brother, Nick, was selected by the New York Islanders in the seventh round (193rd overall) of the 2016 NHL Draft, and his other brother, Michael, completed his senior season at the University of Michigan in 2020-21.
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