Checkers announce initial protected list
June 1, 2004 - ECHL (ECHL)
Charlotte Checkers News Release
Charlotte, NC â Tuesday, June 1, 2004: Today the Charlotte Checkers are announcing their initial player protection list. The announcement is made today by Checkers Head Coach & General Manager Derek Wilkinson. This is the first phase of the player protection process as defined in the latest Collective Bargaining Agreement between the ECHL and the Professional Hockey Players Association. On Friday, May 28, each ECHL team submitted a list of players to which the individual team holds the rights.
By 3 p.m. ET on Friday, June 4, ECHL teams must submit their season-ending rosters of up to 20 players. Season-ending rosters may not include players who were under contract to teams in either the National Hockey League or the American Hockey League prior to the opening of the 2003-04 ECHL season.
Teams will be able to protect up to eight players by extending a qualifying offer no later than July 1. Players will have until August 1 to accept a qualifying offer. Teams are not required to protect players who have signed a contract prior to July 1. No more than four of the players protected can be veterans (players who have played in more than 288 professional games). Players who are not signed or protected by July 1 will become unrestricted free agents.
A non-veteran player that does not accept the qualifying offer will have his rights retained by the extending team for one full playing season. If a player who has received a qualifying offer elects to sign with the team after August 1, the original qualifying offer is null and void and the team may sign the player for any amount they agree upon. If a veteran player turns down a team's qualifying offer and is offered a contract by another ECHL team, the original team will have until August 31 to match the offer. A veteran player who chooses not to accept a qualifying offer and who does sign an offer sheet will become an unrestricted free agent on September 1.
This past Friday, May 28, the Checkers filed their list protecting the following players:
Goalies: Greg Naumenko.
Defenseman: Kengo Ito, Clay Plume, Dan Preston, Andre Lupandin and Chad Wilchynski.
Forwards: Mike Hartman, Takahito Suzuki, David Evans, Blaz Emersic, Alan Egeland, Richard Keyes, Mike Wirll, Chester Gallant, Konrad Mckay, Dave Inman, Doug Christiansen and Francis Belanger.
The Checkers home opener for the 2004-05 season will be held on Saturday, October 30 at 7:00 p.m. at Cricket Arena when Charlotte will host the Columbia Inferno. Season tickets for the upcoming season are now on sale. Fans may call the Checkers office at (704) 342-4423 for complete information.
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ECHL Stories from June 1, 2004
- Bakersfield Submits List of Protected Condors - Bakersfield Condors
- ECHL Represented By 15 Players, Coach In AHL Calder Cup Finals - ECHL
- Gulls release protected list - San Diego Gulls
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- Checkers announce initial protected list - Charlotte Checkers
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