Gulls Sign Six Players to One-Year Contracts
Aug 14, 2019The San Diego Gulls announced today that the American Hockey League (AHL) club has signed forwards Alex Broadhurst, Brent Gates Jr. and Luke Gazdic, defensemen Hunter Drew and Steven Ruggiero, and goaltender Roman Durny to one-year contracts through the 2019-20 AHL season.
Broadhurst, 26 (3/7/93), has appeared in two career NHL games with Columbus after making his NHL debut with the Blue Jackets Apr. 3, 2018 vs. Detroit. Selected by Chicago in the seventh round (199th overall) of the 2011 NHL Draft, Broadhurst recorded 8-22=30 points in 51 AHL games with Cleveland last season. In 333 career AHL games with Cleveland, Lake Erie and Rockford, the 6-0, 178-pound center has earned 70-121=191 points and 105 penalty minutes (PIM). A native of New Lenox, Ill., Broadhurst has tallied 4-11=15 points in 32 career Calder Cup Playoff games, helping Lake Erie to a Calder Cup championship in 2016.
Gates Jr., 22 (8/12/97), made his AHL debut with San Diego last season, collecting 1-1=2 points and a +3 rating in six games after signing an Amateur Tryout (ATO) Mar. 22, 2019. A native of Grand Rapids, Mich., Gates Jr. completed his senior season at the University of Minnesota (Big Ten) in 2018-19, scoring 13-18=31 points in 38 games with a +1 rating and four PIM. Gates Jr. set career highs in points, assists and power-play goals (8). Selected by the Anaheim Ducks in the third round (80th overall) of the 2015 NHL Draft, the 6-2, 198-pound left wing scored 42-43=85 points with a +14 rating and 61 PIM in 148 games over four seasons at Minnesota (2015-19).
Gazdic, 30 (7/25/89), has recorded 35-41=76 points with 621 PIM in 390 career AHL games with San Diego, Stockton, Albany, Bakersfield, Oklahoma City and Texas. A native of Toronto, Ontario, Gazdic earned 3-4=7 points and 39 PIM in 20 games with the Gulls last season. The 6-4, 225-pound left wing has also appeared in 14 career Calder Cup Playoff games with San Diego and Texas. Selected by Dallas in the sixth round (172nd overall) of the 2007 NHL Draft, Gazdic has appeared in 147 career NHL contests with New Jersey and Edmonton, collecting 5-3=8 points and 206 PIM.
Drew, 20 (10/21/98), registered a career-high 16-34=50 points with a +14 rating and 141 PIM over 61 games in 2018-19 with the Charlottetown Islanders of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). The Kingston, Ontario native totaled 24-68=92 points with a +31 rating and 369 PIM in 167 career QMJHL games with the Islanders over the past three seasons. Selected by Anaheim in the sixth round (178th overall) of the 2018 NHL Draft, the 6-2, 196-pound blueliner led the QMJHL with 159 PIM in 2017-18.
Ruggiero, 22 (1/1/97), recorded a career-high 6-5=11 points with a +8 rating and 72 PIM in 37 games in 2018-19 at Lake Superior State University of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA). The 6-3, 220-pound native of Kings Park, N.Y. collected 6-8=14 points with a +13 rating and 111 PIM in 70 NCAA games with Lake Superior State University from 2017-19 and Providence College (Hockey East) from 2015-17. Selected by Anaheim in the sixth round (178th overall) of the 2015 NHL Draft, Ruggiero helped Team USA to a gold medal at the Under-18 World Junior Championship in 2015.
Durny, 21 (5/28/98), amassed a record of 29-19-1 with a 2.61 goals-against average (GAA) and .909 save percentage (SV%) over 50 games in 2018-19 with the Des Moines Buccaneers of the United States Hockey League (USHL). The 6-2, 200-pound netminder ranked second among USHL goaltenders in shutouts (6) and finished third in games played (50) and wins last season. The Liptovsky Mikulas, Slovakia native owns an all-time record of 37-29-3 with 2.55 GAA and .913 SV% in 75 games over two seasons in the USHL. Selected by Anaheim in the fifth round (147th overall) of the 2018 NHL Draft, Durny represented Slovakia in the 2018 World Junior Championship, leading all goaltenders with a .929 SV%.