Interesting story from Andy Strickland at TrueHockey.com …..
Lightning Sign AHL Star
Andy Strickland | TrueHockey.com
Conacher is currently 4th in AHL scoring with 63 points. His 29 goals ranks him second in the league.
The former Canisius College star was named an AHL All-Star this year while leading all rookies in scoring for most of the season. At 5’8 some have compared the crafty forward to former Hart Trophy winner Martin St. Louis. He was one of the final cuts during Tampa Bay’s training camp last fall after playing multiple pre-season games on a line with St. Louis and Steven Stamkos.
The story of Conacher is pretty interesting. He actually played 7 AHL games with both Rochester and Milwaukee last season following his senior year but was never offered a contract for 2011-2012. He also played a handful of ECHL games with Cincinnati.
Norfolk stepped up and signed him to a one-year AHL deal with a NHL training camp tryout. Several NHL teams have expressed interest in signing Conacher for next season but he’s remained loyal to Steve Yzerman and the Lightning organization.
Because of his age, the 22 year old will sign a two-year, entry level deal that pays him $832,500 in 2012 and $725,00 in 2013. He’ll get the maximum $70,000 AHL salary with the max $92,500 in signing bonus.
March first is the first day he can officially sign without this season counting against his entry level status.
More to come,
Andy Strickland
Strickland.andy@gmail.com
