Johnson released by Manchester.

An update from the AHL, where the number of Reign players on playoff rosters dropped by one Tuesday.

The Manchester Monarchs released Chaz Johnson just two days before their first-round series with the Binghamton Senators — Johnson’s last AHL employer — was scheduled to begin. Johnson appeared in four games with the Monarchs, skating as a bottom-six right wing, collecting two penalty minutes and no points in four games.

Still dotting AHL rosters are Dwight King, Bud Holloway, Jordan Nolan, Patrick Mullen, Jordan Hill, Martin Jones and Jeff Zatkoff (Manchester); Beau Erickson (Peoria); Geoff Walker (Wilkes-Barre/Scranton); Andrew Martens (Lake Erie) and Colten Teubert (Oklahoma City).

Including Jon Rheault, who ended the season with the Abbotsford Heat (who didn’t make the Calder Cup playoffs), that’s 12 former Reign players who ended the regular season at the next level.

The turnover on defense (pun intended).

Quick, how many Reign defensemen who played Wednesday were on the team to start the season?
Continue reading “The turnover on defense (pun intended).” »

Reign past, present and future at Kings rookie camp.

Colten Teubert, Michael Pelech, Jordan Nolan, Dwight
King, Patrick Mullen and Garrett Zemlak are among the names confirmed
for the Kings’ rookie camp, Sept. 11-13.

On-ice practice sessions on Sunday, Sept. 12 and Monday, Sept. 13 at Toyota Sports Center in El Segundo (map) are
open to the public at no charge, while the on-ice practice sessions for
Saturday, Sept. 11 requires a ticket for the LA Kings Hockey Fest ’10
event, which takes place that same day.

The camp will conclude with two rookie games against Phoenix at
Jobing.com Arena. The first game is scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 14 at 6
p.m. while the second game is scheduled for Wednesday, Sept., 15 at 2
p.m. Both games are free and open to the public.

The complete roster:

Continue reading “Reign past, present and future at Kings rookie camp.” »

AHL playoffs update.

A brief update from the American Hockey League playoffs, where a pair of former Reign players are competing for two different teams:

Winger Jon Rheault, playing his first Calder Cup playoff game, assisted on the first goal by the Abbotsford Heat in a 3-2 victory over the Rochester Americans on Thursday.

Center Dusty Collins and the Manitoba Moose were shut out by the Hamilton Bulldogs, 2-0, in the first game of their best-of-seven series Thursday.

Several former Reign will make their AHL postseason debuts on Friday when the Manchester Monarchs visit the Portland Pirates. Jeff Zatkoff, Jordan Nolan, Patrick Mullen, Bud Holloway and Dwight King are all on the Monarchs’ playoff roster.

Mullen out, Tremblay in.

Patrick Mullen is out of Ontario. Luis Tremblay, whom the Reign have seen often as a member of the Stockton Thunder and again Wednesday with the Bakersfield Condors, is in.

Mullen was summoned back to the AHL’s Manchester Monarchs after playing one scoreless game for the Reign, who then picked up Tremblay off waivers.

The 26-year-old Tremblay is an ECHL veteran, having broken into the league in 2004. He has split 46 games between Stockton, Bakersfield and Toldeo this season, recording 11 assists and 134 penalty minutes.

Two defenseman joining Reign.

The Reign have received defenseman Patrick Mullen from the AHL’s Manchester Monarchs and have been assigned defenseman Colten Teubert by the Kings. Both will be in uniform tonight when the Reign play the Bakersfield Condors tonight (6 p.m., Rabobank Arena).

Teubert was the Kings’ first-round draft pick (13th overall) in 2008 and finished last season with the Reign, notching two assists in 14 games between the regular season and the playoffs. The recently-turned 20-year-old just completed his final season with the Western Hockey League’s Regina Pats.

Mullen, 23, recorded three goals, eight points and 14 penalty minutes in 36 games during his rookie season with the Monarchs.

The 6-foot, 181-pound native of Pittsburgh played four years at the University of Denver. from 2005-09, collecting 81 points (20-61=81) and 148 penalty minutes in 152 games. The Kings signed Mullen two a two-year entry-level contract in April of last year and have been using him exclusively as a defenseman in Manchester after splitting time at forward in college.

Mullen’s father, Joe, played in the NHL for 16 seasons with four different teams (Blues, Flames, Penguins, Bruins). The first American-born hockey player to score 500 goals and register 1,000 points, he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2000.

The Web site Hockey’s Future didn’t have much to say about Mullen but rated him a 6.0, and ranked him as the 19th-best prospect in the Kings’ system.