Player Tracker 2023-24
Sep 1, 2023Updated September 13, 2023
Hockey fans, AHL fans especially, are always thinking about the future. Before a season ends a topic of conversation is always “Is [favorite player] coming back next season?” While contract length and salaries are often widely reported for their NHL counterparts, it sometimes requires a little more digging to determine the status of players in the American Hockey League.
Keep in mind that many of the players in the “Signed for 2023-24” category are signed by the New York Islanders – and not specifically Bridgeport. Therefore, all players in this category will have a chance to make the NHL team in training camp. There are also players on this list that may not stay with Bridgeport after training camp. Some players can be assigned to the ECHL or in some cases they can be reassigned to their junior team.
Signed for 2023-24 (Forwards)
F Cole Bardreau (AHL deal on 7/6/23)
F Ashton Calder (AHL deal on 8/15/23)
F Joey Cipollone (AHL deal on 7/6/23)
F William Dufour
F Arnaud Durandeau
F Julien Gauthier (Two-year deal with NYI 7/5/23)
F Ruslan Iskhakov
F Otto Koivula
F Jeff Kubiak (AHL deal on 7/6/23)
F Daylan Kuefler (Entry-level deal 5/19/23)
F Karson Kuhlman (One-year, two-way deal 7/5/23)
F Eetu Liukas (Entry-level deal 6/7/23)
F Kyle MacLean (One-year, two-way deal 5/19/23)
F Matthew Maggio (Entry-level deal 5/1/23)
F Reece Newkirk
F Riley Piercey (AHL deal on 5/12/23)
F Brian Pinho (One-year, two-way deal 7/5/23)
F Jacob Pivonka (AHL deal on 5/12/23)
Defensemen
D Samuel Bolduc (Two-year NHL deal 6/20/23)
D Dennis Cholowski
D Trevor Cosgrove (AHL deal on 8/15/23)
D Aidan Fulp (Entry-level deal 3/31/23)
D Isaiah George (Entry-level deal 9/13/23)
D Seth Helgeson
D Grant Hutton
D Christian Krygier (AHL deal on 5/12/23)
D Paul LaDue
D Travis Mitchell (Entry-level deal 3/31/23)
D Calle Odelius (Entry-level deal 8/31/22)
D Robin Salo
D Vincent Sevigny (AHL)
Goaltenders
G Ken Appleby
G Tristan Lennox (Entry-level deal 3/1/23)
G Jakub Skarek (Two-year, two-way deal 7/18/23)
Restricted free agents (RFA) generally means it is up to the New York Islanders whether or not to bring back these players. For players on NHL rosters (and thus more expensive contracts) this can get complicated with qualifying offers and offer sheets but for most players in the AHL there is usually not a bidding war. Players either re-sign with their team from the previous season or become an unrestricted free agent.
Unrestricted free agents are exactly that. They are free to sign with any team in the NHL, AHL or anywhere else in the world.
Unrestricted Free Agents
F Andy Andreoff - Placed on unconditional waivers for the purpose of contract termination, 7/6/23.
F Erik Brown (AHL)
F Chris Terry - Signed with Chicago (AHL), 7/10/23.
F Paul Thompson (AHL)
D Jimmy Lambert (AHL) - Signed with Providence (AHL), 8/9/23.
D Connor McCarthy - Signed with HC Banska Bystrica in Slovakia, 6/15/23.
D Ryan MacKinnon - Signed with Belleville (AHL), 7/1/23.
D Parker Wotherspoon - Signed with Boston (NHL), 7/1/23.
G Cory Schneider (NHL)
All NHL contracts run through June 30th, which means that no team other than the Islanders can sign these players for next season before July 1st.
Players that were on AHL contracts last season may sign with any NHL club at any time however they would not be able to sign with an AHL team (other than Bridgeport) until July 1st. Bridgeport’s roster will really start to take shape once training camps open in the fall.