Avalanche Assign Six to Eagles
Sep 26, 2023
WINDSOR, CO. – The Colorado Eagles, proud AHL affiliate of the Colorado Avalanche, have announced that forwards D.J. Busdeker, Cedric Pare, Ryan Sandelin and Dalton Smith have been reassigned to the Eagles by the team’s NHL affiliate, along with defensemen Gianni Fairbrother and Kyle Mayhew.
Busdeker spent the first three seasons of his professional career with the AHL’s Rockford IceHogs, collecting 15 goals and 36 assists in 142 total contests. In addition, the 5-foot-10, 180-pound winger also notched two goals and two assists in seven games with the ECHL’s Indy Fuel during the 2020-21 season.
Pare posted eight goals and 13 assists in 42 AHL games last season with Colorado, adding four goals and two assists in seven postseason contests. The 6-foot-4, 215-pound center also appeared in four AHL contests with the Belleville Senators during the 2022-23 campaign, notching one goal and two assists.
Sandelin netted one goal in four AHL games with the Eagles last season, after spending four seasons at Minnesota State University, where he earned 43 goals and 33 assists in 128 career NCAA contests. The 24-year-old also helped lead the Mavericks to a CCHA Championship in 2022, after helping guide the team to WCHA Regular Season Championships in 2020 and 2021.
Smith was limited to just six games with the Eagles last season due to injury but has posted five goals and six assists in 58 career AHL contests with Colorado. A second-round pick of the Columbus Blue Jackets in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, Smith has posted at least 100 penalty minutes in three of his nine AHL seasons.
Fairbrother missed the entire 2022-23 season due to a knee injury. The Vancouver, B.C., native spent four-plus seasons with the Everett Silvertips of the Western Hockey League, where he served as team co-captain during his final year in 2020-21. The 6-foot, 205-pound blueliner made his professional debut with the Laval Rocket of the American Hockey League at the end of the 2020-21 campaign and spent his first full AHL season with Laval in 2021-22. Fairbrother has eight points (1g/7a) in 28 career AHL games.
Mayhew skated in one game with the Eagles during the 2022-23 season and collected one goal and two assists in five ECHL games with the Utah Grizzlies. Mayhew spent the previous five seasons at the University of Denver, posting six goals, 29 assists and playing at a combined +51 in his time with the Pioneers. He also helped Denver capture the 2022 NCAA Championship and served as an alternate captain during the 2022-23 season.
The Eagles will kick off the 2023-24 regular season when they travel to take on the Grand Rapids Griffins on Friday, October 13th at 5:00pm MT at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Colorado will make its home debut when the team plays host to Grand Rapids on Friday, October 20th at 7:05pm. Season tickets for the 2023-24 season are on sale now and can be secured with a deposit of just $100 per seat. Click here to place your deposit.
