On Wednesday August 12th, the Wheeling Nailers announced the signing of yet another defensemen to the roster in Shane Kuzmeski. Kuzmeski was a key player at Clarkson University where the defence was top-five in fewest goals allowed in three of his four seasons and captured the ECAC Conference Championship in his junior year. He finished with two goals and nine assists for 11 points in 82 games.
Before his time at Clarkson, Kuzmeski played two seasons in the USHL with the Wichita Falls Wildcats and Coulee Region Chill. During the 2015-16 season, Shane finished with 29 points in 45 games which allowed him to finish as the team’s second leading defensemen overall in points. He also played with former Nailer Troy Josephs.
Nailers head coach Mark French thinks Shane will be a huge addition to the team’s identity, “Shane is a good skater, and uses his mobility to be an effective defender. Shane has also shown the ability to play an up tempo game, which will be a part of our team identity.”
In a statement from Shane Kuzmeski upon having signed with the team on Wednesday, he said, “I was in constant contact with the organization, and I thought it was a good fit for me, plus I like Mark French a lot. I see myself as a two-way player, who can get up and down the ice. Skating is my strength, and I’m excited to make the jump to pro hockey.”
The Nailers haven’t announced it yet, but forward Carlos Fornaris will be rejoining the team for the upcoming season. Fornaris had one goal in three games after finishing his collegiate career at New England College. There, he scored 27 goals along with 98 assists for 125 points. He recorded these totals in 103 games played.
In other roster news, Renars Krastenbergs has signed a try-out contract with Dinamo Riga of the KHL. This leads me to believe he won’t be back in the Friendly City on either an AHL or ECHL contract. Under contract for the Nailers are forwards Alec Butcher, Brad Drobot, Luke Lynch and Andrew Gaus. While they’re soon to bring in Carlos Fornaris, the Nailers have re-signed defensemen Jeremy Beaudry and Marc-Olivier Duquette who Kuzmeski will play alongside.