BILOXI, Miss. � Mississippi Sea Wolves general manager and coach Bob Woods announced today that the team has tendered qualifying offers to five players. The players are defenseman Nic Bilotto (buh-LAHT-toh), center Brent Gauvreau (GOHV-roh), left wing Jeff Hutchins, left wing Andrew Proskurnicki (PRAHS-kur-nihk-ee), and right wing Yannick Tremblay (TRAHM-blay). As per club policy, terms of the offers were not disclosed.
Bilotto, 25, scored in his one and only game with Mississippi on March 26 against Louisiana. After being acquired in a trade with Charlotte on March 18 for Andrei Lupandin, the 6-foot-2 and 215-pound Bilotto finished the season with Grand Rapids of the American Hockey League.
Gauvreau, 24, was selected as a starter for the Western Conference at the 2004 All-Star Game and registered an assist in the contest on January 21 at Peoria. The 6-foot-3 and 210-pound Gauvreau posted 24 goals, 69 points and a team-tying plus/minus of +32 in 52 games. A native of Sudbury, Ontario, Gauvreau also appeared in 12 games with Bridgeport of the AHL, tallying three goals and five points.
Hutchins, 26, registered 26 goals and 45 points over 48 games with Mississippi last season. The 6-foot and 205-pound native of Toronto, Ontario also played two games with Houston of the AHL picking up two penalty minutes. Hutchins was recalled by Rochester of the AHL on February 18 and appeared in 22 regular season games scoring one goal and five points, while playing in one game during the Calder Cup Playoffs accumulating two penalty minutes.
Proskurnicki, 26, was acquired in a trade with Cincinnati on March 16 for future considerations. After starting the season in Idaho, the 6-foot-3 and 210-pound Proskurnicki finished up with Mississippi by notching four goals and 12 points in 10 regular season games. A native of Hamilton, Ontario, Proskurnicki had 11 penalty minutes in five postseason games.
Tremblay, 26, joined Mississippi by signing as a free agent on March 28. A native of Alma, Quebec, Tremblay picked up an assist in five regular season games. The 5-foot-10 and 190-pound Tremblay scored his first professional goal on April 10 at Gwinnett in three playoff games.
Three Mississippi players did not need to receive qualifying offers. Left wing Anthony Battaglia, left wing Lucas Drake and veteran forward Louis Dumont had already signed a Sea Wolves contract by July 1.
Each team was entitled to reserve the rights to a maximum of eight qualified players. Of the eight qualified players, no more than four could be veterans (288 regular season professional hockey games played as of the start of the upcoming 2004-05 season). Players on open qualifying offers cannot be traded. The qualifying offer must remain open for acceptance until August 1 at which time the qualifying offer becomes null and void and the team may sign the qualified player to any salary or may elect to take no further action.
Teams that extend a valid qualifying offer to a non-veteran player shall retain the rights to that qualified player for one playing season. A team that extends a valid qualifying offer to a veteran player will retain the rights to that veteran until August 1.
After August 1, if the veteran player is not signed to a contract by the team, the veteran shall be deemed a restricted free agent and shall be entitled to seek and secure offers of employment from other ECHL teams. Restricted free agents may not be traded.
When a restricted free agent receives a contract offer from a team other than the team with the player's rights and the restricted free agent wishes to accept the contract offer, the restricted free agent and the offering member must, within 24 hours, notify the ECHL, the team with the player's rights and the Professional Hockey Players' Association. The member with the player's rights shall have seven days after the date it is notified to exercise its right to match the contract offer. If a restricted free agent is not signed to either an offer sheet or a contract by an ECHL team by August 31, the player shall be deemed an unrestricted free agent.
Mississippi opens its ninth ECHL season at home on October 22 against the Louisiana IceGators at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum.
A $25 down payment will secure your 2004-05 season ticket by calling (228) 275-WOLF. Season seats average as little as $7.25 per game for adults and $5.50 for children 12 and under.
Sponsorship opportunities are available by calling (228) 388-6151.
