Tri-City has eleven current and former players who are participating in NHL Development Camps this Fall.
Current Players
Tri-City has five current players heading off to camps this week for several different NHL teams.
Captain Jake Sloan is heading off to a development camp this Fall. Last year, Sloan was at the Edmonton Oilers camp. This year, Sloan will head to Boston’s Camp and reunite with former American Adam Mechura.
Jake Sloan put up career numbers last year on the Americans. Sloan had a seventy-point season, the most on the Americans, and was named Team MVP. This included a 31-goal campaign that he will definitely improve on this season. Sloan scared the scouts mainly due to his skating abilities; however, he has worked extensively this off-season on skating and will look to showcase that in Boston.
Lukas Matecha is gearing up for year two as the American starting goalie. The Czech Import, who went undrafted, attended the Red Wings camp last Fall and will attend the Florida Panthers camp this Fall.
Matecha went undrafted this past summer, even though Matecha was ranked as the third-best goalie in North America and eligible for the draft. He was one of the best players at the 2024 Kubota CHL Prospects game, where he outdueled rival goalie Dawson Cowan of the Spokane Chiefs to win the game. Matecha stood out on a poor Tri-City team last year in the first half; however, he struggled in the second half, shooting his numbers. Matecha finished the year with a .901 Save Percentage, 3.42 GAA, and a 13-19-1 record in thirty-five appearances.
The other Czech import, Forward Maximillian Curran, will spend Camp with the Colorado Avalanche after being selected in the fifth round this past summer following a very productive first year in North America as a seventeen-year-old.
Curran surprised many and flew up draft boards as the year went on. Although his season was cut short after an injury was found at the CHL Top Prospects Game, Curran still managed to put up 32 points in his rookie season in just forty games played as a rookie and showcase his excellent vision and superb playmaking abilities, which was enough for the Avalanche to take a shot on the now eighteen-year-old.
Forward Jake Gudelj, a Former Spokane Chief and current American player will head to St. Louis for Camp.
Gudelj was limited to sixteen games last season due to an injury for Tri-City following a fight, Gudelj was considered a prospect to look out for in the draft this past summer heading into the season. In sixteen games, Gudelj put up seven points.
The last current American player to fly out to an NHL Development Camp this week will be the newly acquired Terrell Goldsmith, who heads to Utah.
The former Prince Albert Raider defenseman was drafted by the Utah Hockey Club, formerly the Arizona Coyotes, in the fourth round in 2023. Goldsmith is coming off a career season in which he had fifteen points. However, Goldsmith is known better for his defensive capabilities.
Notable Former American players at NHL Development Camps
Six former American players will participate in NHL Development Camps this Fall; here are some notable ones.
Parker Bell, a Calgary Flames 2022 fifth-round draft pick who signed his Entry Level Contract (ELC) last Fall with the Flames, will be at their camp this week.
Bell wrapped up his five-season WHL career after aging out this past season. He appeared in 239 WHL Games for Tri-City and amassed 184 points. Bell has appeared in two AHL games for the Flames affiliate, the Calgary Wranglers, but he has not scored any points.
Tomas Suchanek, the Tri-City American’s Team MVP during the 2021/22 and 2022/23 seasons and WJC star for Czechia, would have been participating at the Anaheim Ducks camp after signing his ELC; however, he suffered a season-ending injury recently with a ruptured Achilles.
Last year was Suchanek’s first full year of pro hockey, and he shined, showing that scouts should have never brushed him off. Suchanek mainly spent last year with the Anaheim Ducks AHL Affiliate, the San Diego Gulls, competing with other goalies on contracts. With the Gulls, Suchanek appeared in twenty-nine games, posting a .910 save percentage, 2.92 GAA, and 14-10-5 record in his first year of pro hockey.
Another notable former American participating in camp is Kraken draft pick Lukas Dragicevic, Tri-City’s first-round pick in 2020 at fourth overall. After an early July trade involving the two clubs, Dragicevic now plays for the Prince Albert Raiders.
Dragicevic was drafted in the second round by the Kraken in 2023 and signed with the Kraken at the end of last season. Dragicevic played 202 games in Kennewick, racking up 157 points. Dragicevic played three games for Coachella Valley after the Americans season ended, the Kraken affiliate, getting an assist.
Northwest Sports Desk 