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Mallards Welcome Tremblay Back to Quad Cities, Deal for Gasper, Sign Fultz

September 29, 2009 - International Hockey League 2 (IHL 2)
Quad City Mallards News Release


MOLINE, Ill. (September 29, 2009) - The Quad City Mallards, proud International Hockey League (IHL) affiliate of the Philadelphia Flyers, today announced that they have signed right wing Jonathan Tremblay- who played for the Mallards in 2005-06 and for the American Hockey League's Quad City Flames last season- and right winger Ryan Fultz and have also acquired center Joel Gasper from the Flint Generals in exchange for the rights to Tyler Willis. The team further announced that forwards Matt Armstrong and Mike Christensen have been signed to training camp agreements. Per Mallards team policy no contract terms were released.

Tremblay, 25, returns for his third stint in the Quad Cities. The Fauquier, Ontario, native last season played five games for the Flames before moving on- briefly- to the Wichita Thunder of the Central Hockey League and then spending the bulk of the campaign with the AHL's Providence Bruins. The 6' 3", 240-pound Tremblay scored one goal and had 63 penalty minutes in 41 games with Providence.

In 2005-06, Tremblay's first tour of the Quad Cities saw him play 37 games and register two assists for the Mallards after brief stints with the ECHL's Toledo Storm and the United Hockey League's Kalamazoo Wings earlier that year. He would go on to skate for the AHL's Worcester Sharks in both 2006-07 and 2007-08.

"Tremblay is a gritty, tough winger who has experience at the ECHL and AHL levels," said Mallards Head Coach and Director of Hockey Operations Frank Anzalone. "He has worked on his game and made significant improvements. He's an enforcer who will earn respect for our team on the ice."

Tremblay broke into pro hockey in 2004-05 with the ECHL's Johnstown Chiefs- for whom he picked up two goals and five points and accumulated 136 penalty minutes in 46 games. He also got his got his first taste of AHL action that season, suiting up for one game with the Cleveland Barons.

Before turning pro, Tremblay played 124 games with the Acadie-Bathurst Titan over two-plus seasons in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. In his final junior season- 2003-04- he scored three goals and ran up 316 penalty minutes in 60 games. He spent a total of 553 minutes in the box over the course of his junior career.

Gasper, 25, spent the bulk of last season- his first full professional campaign- with Flint after starting the year with the Port Huron Icehawks. The Crookston, Minnesota, native totaled 11 goals and 30 points in 67 games.

"Joel Gasper is a big, rangy forward who played center last season," said Anzalone. "He is a terrific skater, and excellent penalty killer. The goal is to raise his level of play at both ends of the ice. He is a solid addition."

Gasper got his first taste of pro hockey at the end of the 2008 season when he joined the ECHL's Johnstown Chiefs for nine games immediately after completing a four year collegiate career at Robert Morris. In 115 career games as a Colonial the 6' 2", 205-pound Gasper notched 12 goals and 30 points.

The Mallards traded the rights to Willis after originally selecting the veteran right wing in the fourth round of July's IHL Dispersal Draft.

Fultz, 31, returns to pro hockey after not playing the last two full seasons. The Rochester, Michigan, native last took to the ice with the Florida Seals of the Southern Professional Hockey League, for whom he collected six points in five games in 2006-07. Fultz has spent the bulk of his seven-plus year pro career in the ECHL. He split his last full season- 2005-06- between the ECHL's Gwinnett Gladiators and Charlotte Checkers, scoring 16 goals and notching 39 points in 46 games.

"Ryan Fultz is a veteran right wing who was a solid scorer at the ECHL level. A player with solid offensive instincts and good hands, he wants to be back in the game after a two year layoff," said Anzalone.

In 285 career games with the ECHL's Gladiators, Checkers, New Orleans Brass, Arkansas RiverBlades, Greensboro Generals, Lexington Men O'War and Texas Wildcatters; the West Coast Hockey League's San Diego Gulls; and the SPHL's Seals, the 6' 0", 210-pound Fultz has piled up 83 goals and 206 points. Fultz spent a season and a half at Bowling Green, recording 22 goals and 41 points in 52 collegiate games, before jumping to the Brass in midway through the 2000-01 campaign.

Armstrong, 27, returns to North America after spending his first two professional seasons in the Netherlands. A native of Orleans, Ontario, Armstrong last year produced 12 goals and 22 points in 19 games with the Nijmegen Devils. As a rookie in 2007-08, 6', 180-pound left winger rang up 35 goals and 72 points in 40 games with the Den Haag Wolves.

Armstrong made the trip across the Atlantic after playing two seasons for Concordia University in Montreal. He recorded 10 goals and 21 points in 36 total games with the Stingers. Armstrong enrolled at Concordia after three-plus junior seasons in the Ontario Hockey League with Kitchener, Peterborough, Plymouth and Barrie.

"Armstrong might be a surprise," said Anzalone. "His OHL pedigree is strong and he has had success playing in Europe. He could be anywhere between a second and third line left wing. Under ordinary circumstances, he could be a signed guy, but with so many players in camp he's a guy who has to come in and make the team."

Christensen, 24, last year finished tied for second in the Eastern Professional Hockey League in goals (34) while helping the Brooklyn Aces to the top of the EPHL's regular season standings. The Detroit Lakes, Minnesota, native totaled 53 points in 37 games with the Aces last season and also played one game for the ECHL's Elmira Jackals. The 6' 1", 185-pound Christensen played collegiately for Division III St. Mary's in 2006-07, notching six goals and nine points in 20 games.

"Christensen is a very interesting player, who played last year at Brookyln, a highly successful single A franchise," said Anzalone. "He comes highly recommended. His rate of improvement has been dramatic, he has good size and he understands the game."

Armstrong, Christensen, Fultz, Gasper and Tremblay join Obi Aduba, Derek Bachynski, Matt Burke, Marc Desloges, Jean Desrochers, Jason Goulet, Kyle Jones, Kyryll Katrych, Sebastien Laplante, Chris Lipsett, Michael Lombardi, Shane Lovdahl, Mike Maier, Brandon Marino, Darren McMillan, Jacques Perreault and Mike Zbriger- whose signings were previously announced- to bring to 22 the number of players who have come to terms with the Mallards heading into training camp.

The Mallards will open camp at the i wireless Center next Monday, October 5. The Mallards will see their first exhibition action when they take on the Bloomington PrairieThunder in Decatur on Saturday night, October 10. The following afternoon at 2:00 p.m. the same two teams will meet again, this time at the Quad City Sports Center in Davenport. All tickets for the October 11 preseason game are available for just $3 and can be purchased at the Mallards' office at the i wireless Center, over the phone at (309) 277-1364 or at the door the day of the game.

After opening their first IHL regular season on the road against the Flint Generals on October 17, the Mallards will return to the i wireless Center to open their home schedule with "Faceoff Rocks" on Saturday, October 24 against the defending Turner Cup champion Fort Wayne Komets. In addition to the clash between the Mallards and Komets, "Faceoff Rocks" will also feature a pre-game performance by the legendary multi-platinum selling band Night Ranger, historic displays and interactive games provided by the Hockey Hall of Fame and a triple Giveaway of Mallards Opening Night t-shirts, Mallards Thunderstixx and Mallards magnet schedules. Mallards season ticket and mini-plan packages are currently available and can also be purchased by calling (309) 277-1364. Individual game tickets will go on sale a week from today- on Thursday, September 24.



International Hockey League 2 Stories from September 29, 2009


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