McLeod Becomes 339th Player To Play In NHL After ECHL

Published on December 27, 2007 under ECHL (ECHL) News Release

PRINCETON, N.J. - Former San Diego left wing Cody McLeod made his National Hockey League debut with the Colorado Avalanche on Dec. 19 raising the number of players to play in the NHL after the ECHL to 339.

The Johnstown Chiefs are the ECHL affiliate of the Avalanche of the NHL and the Lake Erie Monsters of the American Hockey League.

McLeod is the 10th former ECHL player to play his first NHL game this season, joining former Roanoke and Wheeling left wing Jason Jaffray (Vancouver on Dec. 12), former Toledo goaltender Drew MacIntyre (Vancouver on Dec. 13), former Columbia center Brandon Nolan (Carolina on Dec. 22), former Johnstown Chiefs and Fresno Falcons goaltender Dmitri Patzold (San Jose on Oct. 7), Reading Royals goaltender Jonathan Quick (Los Angeles on Dec. 6), former Stockton left wing Liam Reddox (Edmonton on Dec. 7), former San Diego goaltender Tyler Weiman (Colorado on Oct. 4), former Charlotte right wing Craig Weller (Phoenix on Oct. 4) and former Phoenix RoadRunners center Daniel Winnik (Phoenix Coyotes on Oct. 4).

The 23-year-old McLeod played for San Diego as a rookie in 2005-06 and had nine points (4g-5a) and 48 penalty minutes in 16 regular season games before being called up to the AHL where he had nine points (4g-5a) and 87 penalty minutes in 33 games for Lowell. He returned to San Diego for the Kelly Cup Playoffs and had three points (2g-1a) and 14 penalty minutes in two games. He has a plus-minus rating of +1, seven penalty minutes and five shots in three games with the Avalanche and 13 points (6g-7a) and 101 penalty minutes in 27 games for Lake Erie.

There have been 194 former ECHL players who have played their first NHL game in the past six seasons. Twenty-six former ECHL players made their NHL debut in 2006-07, including two who played in both the ECHL and NHL as goaltender Yutaka Fukufuji played for Reading and Los Angeles while defenseman Bryan Young skated for Stockton and Edmonton. Dave McKee played for Augusta and dressed five games as the backup goaltender for Stanley Cup Champion Anaheim.

The Premier 'AA' Hockey League, the ECHL has affiliations with 26 of the 30 teams in the NHL, marking the 11th consecutive season that the league has had affiliations with at least 20 teams in the NHL.

There are 15 coaches in the NHL who have ECHL experience including former Wheeling coach Peter Laviolette, who is head coach of the Carolina Hurricanes, and former Mississippi coach Bruce Boudreau, who is interim head coach of the Washington Capitals.

The ECHL is represented for the seventh consecutive year on the National Hockey League championship team in 2007 with Anaheim assistant coach Dave Farrish, players Francois Beauchemin and George Parros and broadcasters John Ahlers and Steve Carroll.

ECHL
Celebrating its 20th Anniversary in 2007-08, the ECHL is the Premier 'AA' Hockey League and the third-longest tenured professional hockey league behind only the National Hockey League and the American Hockey League.

ECHL began in 1988-89 with five teams in four states and has grown to be a coast-to-coast league with 25 teams playing 900 games in 17 states and British Columbia in 2007-08.

The league officially changed its name to ECHL on May 19, 2003.

The ECHL has affiliations with 26 of the 29 teams in the American Hockey League in 2007-08 and for the past 17 years there has been an ECHL player on the Calder Cup champion.

In each of the last two seasons there have been more than 225 players who have played in both the ECHL and the AHL and there were over 800 call-ups involving more than 500 players.

In the last five seasons the ECHL has had more call-ups to the AHL than all other professional leagues combined with over 2,000 call-ups involving more than 1,000 players since 2002-03.

Further information on the ECHL is available from its website at ECHL.com.

ECHL Stories from December 27, 2007

• Fukufuji strong, but Condors fall to Phoenix, 3-2 - Bakersfield Condors
• Falcons Drop 2-0 Decision in Stockton - Fresno Falcons
• RoadRunners Slip Past Condors 3-2 - Phoenix RoadRunners
• Cyclones Too Much for Nailers - Wheeling Nailers
• Chiefs Felled By Devils - Johnstown Chiefs
• Gladiators Burn Inferno, Snap Skid with 3-1 win - Atlanta Gladiators
• Devils Rock Chiefs, 5-0 - Trenton Devils
• Gladiators Beat Inferno 3-1 - Columbia Inferno
• Checkers Clomp Lynx, Win 4-1 - Charlotte Checkers
• Cyclones Drill Nailers, 8-2 - Cincinnati Cyclones
• Farynuk Recalled To Springfield, Geris Returns to Lineup - Stockton Thunder
• McLeod Becomes 339th Player To Play In NHL After ECHL - ECHL
• New Year's Eve Tickets Still Available - Johnstown Chiefs
• ECHL Transactions - ECHL
• Stingrays Chaput Named In Glas Co, Player Of The Week - ECHL
• Chaput Named In Glas Co ECHL Player of the Week - South Carolina Stingrays
• Game Preview: Stockton Thunder Vs. Fresno Falcons - Stockton Thunder
• Royals To Induct Jon Francisco Into Reading Eagle Wall of Honor - Reading Royals
• Parley Named Rbk Hockey ECHL Goaltender of the Week - South Carolina Stingrays
• Stingrays Parley Named Rbk Hockey Goalie Of The Week - ECHL
• Pensacola s Two Penalty-Shot Goals Set ECHL Record - ECHL
• Patrick Jarrett Assigned To Reading - Reading Royals
• Ice Pilots Weekly - Pensacola Ice Pilots
• Red Cross Blood Drive December 28 - Columbia Inferno
• Daoust Headed To American Hockey League - Cincinnati Cyclones
• Zanoski Agrees To Terms, Fisher Returns To Net - Stockton Thunder
• Leading Goal Scorer Johnson, Labelle Return From AHL - Utah Grizzlies
• Nesbitt Called Up to AHL Rockford - Atlanta Gladiators
• ECHL Today - ECHL
• Nailers Voice Earns Trip to All-Star Game - Wheeling Nailers
• Jackals Win Streak Ends At Six With 4-3 Ot Loss At Reading - Elmira Jackals

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