Checkers Acquire Veteran Goalie Tom McCollum From Stockton
March 8, 2017 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Charlotte Checkers News Release
CHARLOTTE, NC - The Charlotte Checkers today announced that they have acquired goaltender Tom McCollum on loan from the Stockton Heat.
McCollum, 27, is a veteran of 227 AHL games with Grand Rapids and Stockton, during which time he has posted a 104-91-13 record, 2.78 goals-against average and .905 save percentage. He will join the Checkers in Winnipeg as they begin a back-to-back, two-game set against the Manitoba Moose starting Thursday.
In a corresponding move, the Checkers assigned rookie goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic to the ECHL's Florida Everblades. The team also swapped forwards with the Everblades, recalling Clark Bishop and assigning Mitchell Heard.
McCollum, a 6-foot-2, 215-pound native of Amherst, NY, won his only AHL game with the Heat this season, stopping 19 of 20 shots during a 40-minute relief appearance vs. San Diego on Nov. 25. He also appeared in five games with the ECHL's Adirondack Thunder, most recently on Feb. 25, going 3-1-0 with a 2.97 goals-against average and .894 save percentage.
A first-round draft choice (30th overall) by Detroit in 2008, McCollum has played in three NHL games with the Red Wings, earning his first career victory during the 2014-15 campaign.
McCollum, who was in the Detroit organization from his draft until this season, is the Grand Rapids Griffins' all-time leader in games played, saves and minutes played. Last season, he posted a 2.42 goals-against average and .923 save percentage - both of which were tops among Griffins goaltenders - and played in seven of the team's 10 Calder Cup Playoff games. He was also named the Griffins' Man of the Year in the community three times.
Nedeljkovic, 21, joins the Everblades for the second time this season. The Carolina Hurricanes' second-round draft choice in 2014, he went 2-0-0 with a 2.83 goals-against average and .921 save percentage in three December appearances while also becoming the 12th goaltender in ECHL history to score a goal. With the Checkers, Nedeljkovic, who played in six of the Checkers' last nine games, is 8-14-1 with a 3.40 goals-against average and .881 save percentage.
Bishop, a 20-year-old rookie who posted four points (2g, 2a) in 30 games with the Checkers this season, returns to the club after notching 11 points (3g, 8a) in 21 outings with Florida. Heard, 24, joins the Everblades for the first time this season after recording three assists and 53 penalty minutes in 32 games with the Checkers and missing the last six games due to injury.
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