Mayhem Set Opening Week Roster
December 27, 2020 - SPHL (SPHL)
Macon Mayhem News Release
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MACON, Ga. - The Macon Mayhem of the Southern Professional Hockey League (SPHL) announced today their final roster heading into the first game of the season on Monday, December 28 on the road against the Huntsville Havoc. The 23-man roster contains two additions and two deletions from the opening training camp roster last week and consists of 13 forwards, eight defensemen, and two goaltenders.
The two newcomers to the roster from training camp include forward Dean Balsamo and goaltender Ryan Ruck. Balsamo has played a pair of games already this season for Tulsa in the ECHL, logging one assist. He was a teammate of fellow Mayhem defenseman Joey Colatarci at Adrian College last season. Ruck was signed to a contract with Reading in the ECHL this season before the team shut down due to COVID-19 protocols then appeared in camp with the ECHL's Indy Fuel before heading to Macon. He backstopped Northeastern University's hockey team for four seasons from 2015 to 2019 and played as a graduate transfer last year at Colorado College. To make room on the roster for Balsamo and Ruck, the team waived defenseman Patrick Murphy and goaltender Michael Stiliadis earlier in the week.
The Mayhem roster is a perfect mix of youth and experience. Fifteen of the 23 will be playing their first full professional season this year in Macon. Of the other eight players on the Macon roster, seven have experience in the higher-level ECHL, with four having played in the league last season.
The SPHL is allowing an expanded 23-man roster for the first week of the season that must be reduced to 20, with 19 players active each night and a healthy scratch. The final roster will contain one more player than the 2019-20 allowance of 19 players, one of those a healthy scratch as well.
The Mayhem kick off their home schedule this coming weekend on Saturday, January 2 as they host the Birmingham Bulls, with puck drop scheduled for 6:35 PM EST. It's not too late to become a part of the team this season as tickets and sponsorship opportunities are still available. To join in on all the excitement, contact the Mayhem at 478.803.1592.
MACON MAYHEM OPENING WEEK ROSTER
NAME POS HEIGHT WEIGHT BORN - HOMETOWN 2019-20 TEAM(S)
Casey Johnson D 6'2" 200 4/12/1996 - Grand Forks, ND Univ. of North Dakota (NCAA D1)
Darren Brady D 6'0" 200 4/5/1996 - Lake Orion, MI RIT (NCAA D1)
Derek Topatigh D 5'11" 185 3/3/1997 - Missisauga, ON Princeton Univ. (NCAA D1)
Joe Colatarci D 6'2" 185 2/25/1995 - Ft. Myers, FL Adrian College (NCAA)
Josh Victor D 6'4" 210 2/10/1994 - Round Rock, TX Fayetteville (SPHL)/Quad City (SPHL)
Nick Minerva D 5'11" 190 2/12/1996 - New Brunswick, NJ MACON/Wheeling (ECHL)
Oscar Arfelt D 6'3" 205 11/16/1994 - Djursholm, Sweden MACON/Fayetteville (SPHL)/Bodens HF (Sweden)
TJ Dockery D 6'0" 200 9/28/1995 - Lockport, NY Norwich Univ. (NCAA)
Alex Kromm F 5'11" 185 10/31/1991 - Penticton, BC Jacksonville (ECHL)/Toledo (ECHL)
Andrew Durham F 6'3" 200 3/30/1995 - Richardson, TX Univ. of Wisconsin-Superior (NCAA)/Norfolk (ECHL)
Dean Balsamo F 5'10" 180 12/23/1995 - St. Clair Shores, MI Adrian College (NCAA)
Dom Sacco F 5'9" 170 6/8/1995 - Brooklyn, NY St. Norbert College (NCAA)
Gabe Guertler F 5'9" 190 5/3/1995 - Plantation, FL Univ. of Prince Edward Island (Usports - CAN)
Jared Bethune F 6'0" 185 1/20/1997 - Ft. Frances, ON Queen's Univ. (Usports - CAN)
Jimmy Soper F 6'1" 180 3/19/1995 - Waterloo, ON MACON/Greenville (ECHL)
Jordan Hall F 6'0" 220 8/3/1995 - Anchorage, AK Norwich Univ. (NCAA)
Logan Coomes F 5'11" 185 11/6/1996 - Nashville, TN Univ. of Alaska-Fairbanks (NCAA D1)
Ray Brice F 6'0" 195 11/9/1995 - Houghton, MI Michigan Tech (NCAA D1)
Ryan Smith F 6'0" 195 4/4/1997 - Roanoke, VA Univ. of Maine (NCAA D1)
Stathis Soumelidis F 6'2" 215 1/17/1994 - Brno, Czech Republic MACON/Fayetteville (SPHL)
Stephen Pierog F 5'11" 190 7/7/1994 - Guelph, ON MACON
Jake Theut G 6'3" 190 10/16/1993 - Washington, MI Roanoke (SPHL)/Greenville (ECHL)/Norfolk (ECHL)
Ryan Ruck G 6'1" 180 9/12/1994 - Coto de Cazo, CA Colorado College (NCAA)
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SPHL Stories from December 27, 2020
- Mayhem Set Opening Week Roster - Macon Mayhem
- Havoc Win Opener Versus Knoxville - Huntsville Havoc
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