ST. JOHN'S, N.L. — When the Newfoundland Growlers square off with the Toledo Walleye tonight and Saturday at Mile One Centre, there’s a good chance at least half of the players in the Growlers’ lineup will be recalling the championship thrill they felt at the end of the last meeting between the Growlers and Walleye at Mile One.
And there will be one player on the Toledo bench who more than likely will be sharing those feelings.
Speedy forward Josh Kestner, who was with the Growlers last season and played some of his best hockey on the playoff run to the Kelly Cup title, is now with the Walleye, although he might unofficially return to being a Growler for a minute or two before tonight’s game as he is presented with his championship ring by his former team.
The 26-year-old Kestner, who was signed as a free agent by the Walleye’s AHL affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins, is the co-leading scorer for Toledo, with 12 points (4G, 8A) through 11 games.
The Walleye (7-3-1) have had success in the early part of the season, leading the Central Division despite a massively overhauled lineup. Only five players who suited up with Toledo in the league final against Newfoundland last season are on the team’s roster today — goaltenders Pat Nagle and Kaden Fulcher, rearguard Brendan Kotyk and forwards Shane Berschbach and Tyler Spezia.
Nevertheless, the Walleye have a formidable ECHL lineup.
Veteran forward T. J. Hensick, who spent the majority of last season with Toledo, but missed the playoffs while with the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda, is back. Hensick, 33, who played nearly 100 National Hockey League games with the Colorado Avalanche and baker’s dozen with the St. Louis Blues, is joined by former NHL defenceman Steve Oleksy, one-time Minnesota Wild first-round pic Zack Phillips and former RIT Tigers captain Abbott Girduckis, who shares the team points lead with Kestner and is credited with the game-winning goal in three of the Walleye’s seven victories.
Meanwhile, the Growlers (7-5-0) have nine players back from the spring’s Kelly Cup winners. That includes defenceman Alex Gudbranson, who will also receive his championship ring tonight. Gudbranson had been injured and with the AHL’s Toronto Marlies earlier this season when Newfoundland held its major ring ceremony. The Growlers would have had 10 returnees, but forward Scott Pooley, who leads Newfoundland with 10 goals, was recalled to the Marlies on Thursday.
Dog Bites
While Newfoundland and Toledo met six times in the Kelly Cup final last spring, tonight’s game will be the first regular-season contest between the two teams … Heading into Thursday, Growlers forward Colt Conrad (2-13-15) was the ECHL’s top rookie scorer … Newfoundland has activated defenceman Tommy Panico from its reserve list … Veteran goaltender Pat Nagle has started nine of Toledo’s games, including all seven wins…Toledo owns the league’s top power play, with a 28.1 per cent success rate … The Walleye are affiliated with the NHL’s Detroit Red Wings and have one player signed to an entry-level contract with the Wings, backup goalie Kaden Fulcher, who played one NHL game with Detroit last year … Defenceman Blake Hillman, who appeared in four NHL games with the Chicago Blackhawks a couple of years ago, has been promoted from Toledo to the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins …
Twitter: @telybrendan
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