Monarchs sign defenseman
The Manchester Monarchs, the Kings' AHL affiliate, today signed University of Wisconsin defenseman Jeff Likens to an amateur tryout agreement. (Yes, the same thing Scott Parse signed with Grand Rapids). Likens, who just completed his senior season, had not been drafted. He was a teammate of defenseman Joe Piskula, who is now with the Kings. Likens, 5-foot-11 and 178 pounds, had one goal, five assists and 42 penalty minutes in 40 games with the Badgers this season.
The Monarchs, for those scoring at home, are in first place in the Eastern Conference Atlantic Division, with 91 points. That's the fourth-most points in the 14-team conference. The Monarchs' regular season ends April 15, and on April 6 they will honor the Kings by wearing Gretzky-era black-and-silver jerseys.
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Rich Hammond has covered the Kings, on a full-time or part-time basis, since the 2000-01 season. He was the beat writer for the entire John Torchetti era and has witnessed Bob Miller singing country music in a Nashville honky-tonk bar. A native of Los Angeles, Rich has worked at the Daily News since 1999 and also serves as the paper's deputy sports editor. E-mail Rich at rich.hammond@dailynews.com.
Jill Painter joined the Daily News in 2000 and during the last eight years she's covered the Dodgers, Cal State Northridge, UCLA, Kings, golf and everything in between. Even though she's from Colorado, she still freezes in the Staples Center press box but always manages to thaw her fingers in time to make deadline. E-mail Jill at jill.painter@dailynews.com.
Never heard of the guy. Looks kind of small for a d-man and his stats are low. He is obviously a defensive defenseman, which the Kings need. Glad Monarchs grabbed him up so we can see how he goes.
Regarding Likens:
Just remember that one year ago this week, Manchester signed Erick Lizon and Ryan Gibbons to ATO's... this is not that big a deal and these generally don't impact the organization. Neither Lizon or Gibbons were offered deals, and are both toiling in obscurity this season.