ECHL Atlanta Gladiators

Gladiators Extend Qualifying Offers to Eight

Published on July 2, 2010 under ECHL (ECHL)
Atlanta Gladiators News Release


The Gwinnett Gladiators have extended qualifying offers to an ECHL maximum eight players for the 2010-2011 season. Gwinnett qualified the following eight players: Adam Berti, Matt Caruana, Drew Paris, Jamie Fritsch, Mike Radja, Tom Zanoski, Nick St. Pierre and Jason Lawrence.

Berti finished the 2009-2010 season with 57 points (16g, 41a) and led Gwinnett in scoring. The Oshawa, Ontario, native served as team captain for the Gladiators last year. Berti appeared in two NHL games with the Chicago Blackhawks during the 2007-2008 season but did not register a point while in the NHL. Berti was drafted by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 3rd round of the NHL Entry Draft with the 68th overall pick in 2004.

Caruana netted 25 points (13g, 12a) for Gwinnett during his second professional season last year. He also spent time in the American Hockey League with Portland and recorded 9 points (3g, 6a) in 36 AHL games. Caruana split time during his rookie season in 2008-09 with Portland and Iowa of the AHL and Bakersfield of the ECHL after he completed his final collegiate season with Niagara University. Caruana played for Niagara University from 2004-2008.

Paris led all Gladiators defensemen in scoring during the 2009-2010 season with 45 points (12g, 33a). The Pointe-Claire, Quebec, native represented the Gladiators in the 2010 ECHL All Star Game in Ontario California and notched a goal and was a +3 to help the American Conference to a 10-9 win. Pairs joined Gwinnett for the 2009 Kelly Cup Playoffs and appeared in 2 games with the Gladiators. Before he joined Gwinnett, Paris split time with Rochester of the AHL and Florida of the ECHL after he finished his final season in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League in 2008-09.

Fritsch skated in 48 games for the Gladiators during the 2009-2010 season. He recorded 5 points (1g, 4a) and earned a call-up to the American Hockey League last season. He appeared in 2 games with Norfolk while in the AHL. The Odenton, Maryland, native played in one NHL game with Philadelphia in 2008-09 after he completed his senior season with the University of New Hampshire. In four collegiate seasons at the University of New Hampshire, Fritsch finished with 39 points (11g, 28a) in 146 career collegiate games.

Radja did not appear in a game with Gwinnett last season. After he began the season in Finland with TPS Turku, Radja was signed by the Gladiators and called up to the AHL where he appeared in 31 games with the Syracuse Crunch and tallied 14 points (7g, 7a). The Yorkville, Illinois, native was traded by Syracuse to Bridgeport where he skated in 17 games and posted 10 points (5g, 5a).

Zanoski played with six different teams in 2009-10 as he earned a call up to five different American Hockey League teams and he skated for Gwinnett. He averaged over one point per game with Gwinnett and finished with 47 points (25g, 22a) in 42 games with the Gladiators. He skated with Binghamton, Albany, Lake Erie, Toronto and Syracuse in the AHL last year. The Brampton, Ontario, native was acquired by the Gladiators during the 2008-09 season and led Gwinnett in scoring in the 2009 Kelly Cup Playoffs with 8 points (3g, 5a) in 5 games.

St. Pierre was acquired by the Gladiators from the Reading Royals on February 1st. The St. Etienne, Quebec, native had 7 points, all assists, in 13 games with the Gladiators and finished the season with 21 points (6a, 15a) in the ECHL. St. Pierre earned two call-ups during the 2009-2010 season and appeared in 5 games with Syracuse and 13 games with Norfolk.

Lawrence joined the Gladiators on November 26th after he began the season with the Charlotte Checkers. The Saugus, Massachusetts, native had 21 points (11g, 10a) in 46 games with Gwinnett and he recorded 2 points (1g, 1a) in 7 games with Charlotte. Lawrence skated four seasons with Boston University from 2005-2009 where he compiled 97 (46g, 51a) points in 158 career collegiate games.

Players who had already signed a contract by July 1 did not need to receive a qualifying offer. 

Each team was entitled to reserve the rights to a maximum of eight qualified players. Of the eight qualified players, no more than four could be veterans (260 regular season professional hockey games played as of the start of the upcoming 2010-11 season). Players on open qualifying offers cannot be traded. 

The qualifying offer must remain open for acceptance until Aug. 1 at which time the qualifying offer becomes null and void and the team may sign the qualified player to any salary or may elect to take no further action. Teams that extend a valid qualifying offer to a non-veteran player shall retain the rights to that qualified player for one playing season. 

A team that extends a valid qualifying offer to a veteran player will retain the rights to that veteran until Aug. 1. After Aug. 1, if the veteran player is not signed to a contract by the team, the veteran shall be deemed a restricted free agent and shall be entitled to seek and secure offers of employment from other ECHL teams. Restricted free agents may not be traded. When a restricted free agent receives a contract offer from a team other than the team with the player's rights and the restricted free agent wishes to accept the contract offer, the restricted free agent and the offering member must, within 24 hours, notify the ECHL, the team with the player's rights and the Professional Hockey Players' Association. The member with the player's rights shall have seven days after the date it is notified to exercise its right to match the contract offer. 

If a restricted free agent is not signed to either an offer sheet or a contract by an ECHL team by Aug. 31, the player shall be deemed an unrestricted free agent.

The Gwinnett Gladiators open the 2010-11 season on the road before returning home to host the South Carolina Stingrays on Friday, October 22nd at 7:35 p.m. The Gladiators are the AA affiliate of the Atlanta Thrashers and play all home games at the 11,355-seat Arena at Gwinnett Center, located just off I-85 on Sugarloaf Parkway in Duluth.



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