The Abbotsford Heat made their final round of preseason cuts on Wednesday, assigning three players to the ECHL's Alaska Aces.
Goalie Laurent Brossoit, defenceman Kane Lafranchise and forward Peter Sivak were sent to the Heat's new ECHL affiliate.
Brossoit is the lone player in that group on a two-way NHL/AHL contract, but he was squeezed out of the Heat crease when the Calgary Flames sent Reto Berra to Abbotsford on Monday. Berra and Joni Ortio will comprise the Heat goaltending duo, while Brossoit – a 20-year-old rookie pro from Surrey – will benefit from the opportunity to play regularly with the Aces.
Lafranchise is a three-year veteran of the Aces who suited up for 10 AHL games last season – nine with the Oklahoma City Barons, and one with the Houston Areos.
Sivak, a 31-year-old Czech winger, is heading into just his second season in North America after 12 pro seasons in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. He excelled in the Heat's lone exhibition game vs. the Utica Comets on Sept. 22, notching a goal and an assist on a line with Brett Olson and Ben Hanowski.
Wednesday's cuts mean that defenceman Dean Arsene and forward Brett Lyon have both stuck with the Heat out of training camp. Arsene, a 33-year-old Abbotsford native, is on a 25-game professional tryout contract, and he returned to practice this week after suffering a head injury in the exhibition game against Utica.
Lyon distinguished himself vs. the Comets by dropping the gloves three times. The Grand Forks, B.C. native is in his second full pro season – he amassed five goals, five assists and 218 penalty minutes in 57 ECHL games last season with the Orlando Solar Bears and the Bakersfield Condors.
The Heat are carrying 17 forwards, eight defencemen and two goalies into their first regular season games this weekend (Oct. 4-5 at the Lake Erie Monsters), though it's worth noting that three forwards (Steve Begin, Markus Granlund and Zach McKelvie) are currently injured.
The complete roster, with jersey numbers, is as follows:
FORWARDS
#4 – Zach McKelvie
#11 – Corban Knight
# 12 – Paul Byron
#13 – Turner Elson
#15 – Greg Nemisz
#17 – Josh Jooris
#20 – Roman Horak
#22 – Blair Jones
#24 – David Eddy
#25 – Max Reinhart
#26 – Markus Granlund
#28 – Ben Hanowski
#34 – Carter Bancks
#36 – Michael Ferland
#46 – Brett Lyon
#48 – Brett Olson
#49 – Steve Begin
DEFENCEMEN
#2 – Brady Lamb
#5 – Tyler Wotherspoon
#7 – John Ramage
#14 – Mark Cundari
#16 – Dean Arsene
#18 – Drew MacKenzie
#23 – Chad Billins
#32 – Patrick Sieloff
GOALIES
#31 – Joni Ortio
#33 – Reto Berra