Wolf Pack Announce Player Transactions
Dec 17, 2013(Photo by Gerry Thomas/NHLI via Getty Images)
Wolf Pack general manager Jim Schoenfeld announced today that the parent New York Rangers have reassigned forward Josh Nicholls from the Wolf Pack to its ECHL affiliate, the Greenville Road Warriors, and that the Wolf Pack have signed forward Akim Aliu to a Professional Tryout (PTO) agreement.
Nicholls was scoreless, with six shots on goal, in four games after joining the Wolf Pack from Greenville November 29. In 16 ECHL games with the Road Warriors, he has two goals and two assists for four points, along with four penalty minutes. A rookie out of the Western Hockey League, Nicholls was signed as a free agent by the Rangers March 5, 2013.
Aliu, a 6-4, 225-pound fifth-year pro and second-round NHL draft pick by the Chicago Blackhawks in 2007, has skated in 14 AHL games this year with the Hamilton Bulldogs. The Okene, Nigeria native had three goals and an assist for four points, along with 18 PIM, in those 14 contests. Aliu split last season between the NHL’s Calgary Flames and their AHL affiliate, the Abbotsford Heat. He was scoreless with 14 penalty minutes in five NHL contests and had four goals and seven assists for 11 points, plus 111 PIM, in 42 AHL games.
Aliu, who was the 56th overall pick by Chicago in 2007 out of the Ontario Hockey League, also suited up for two NHL games with Calgary in 2011-12, and tallied two goals and an assist for three points and amassed 12 penalty minutes. In 212 career AHL contests with the Rockford IceHogs, Chicago Wolves, Peoria Rivermen, Heat and Bulldogs, he has totaled 39 goals and 27 assists for 66 points and served 346 minutes in penalties.
The Wolf Pack’s next game is home at the XL Center this Friday, December 20, when the Pack host the Bridgeport Sound Tigers at 7:00 PM. The first 3,000 fans into that game receive a free Wolf Pack gym bag, courtesy of the Hartford Courant, and all Wolf Pack Friday-night home games feature $1 hot dogs and $2 beers through the start of the second period, presented by Marc’s Appliance Warehouse, located at 75 Prospect Ave., Hartford, CT.
Tickets for all Wolf Pack 2013-14 home games, are available at the Public Power Ticket Office at the XL Center, by phone at (877) 522-8499 or at www.hartfordwolfpack.com. Wolf Pack tickets start as low as $12 for youth 12 years old or younger. To speak with a representative about season or group tickets, call (855) 762-6451.