Toronto Maple Leafs Affiliate Makes Pair Of Trades In Order To Turn Winless Season Around
The Cincinnati Cyclones, the Maple Leafs' ECHL affiliate, has made a pair of trades in order to bring in some fresh faces as the club tries to get back on track.
The ECHL is a league that doesn't garner too much attention, but it doesn't mean there isn't some fantastic hockey to be played. Several NHLers have made pit stops in the ECHL as they try to earn their spot in the biggest pro hockey league in the world.
A secondary farm system for teams, the ECHL is a great place to build up players and give them reps without sacrificing your AHL roster. Toronto's affiliate, the Cincinnati Cyclones are trying to build up the future of the Maple Leafs but are struggling this year at 0-6-2.
In order to kickstart things, the team has made a couple of trades. Per Maple Leafs insider Kyle Cushman through his X account the Cyclones have acquired two players:
Austen Swankler
Swankler, a 23-year-old center, was a standout during his time with Bowling Green University. He scored 27 goals and 43 assists in 71 games for the Falcons, and originally started this year with the Fort Wayne Komets before going to Worcester and then ending up in Cincinnati.
Swankler will add a big offensive punch for the Cyclones, who are in desperate need of scoring, as the team only has 15 goals in 8 games, with nearly double against. It's a possibility he will get a look come training camp as he is a center, but his journey to the NHL is a long one.
Mason McCarty
McCarty, a 5'10 winger is 27 years old and hasn't hit the NHL as of yet, being a lifetime ECHLer with a couple of stints in other pro leagues. The Alberta native has been a solid contributor over the last few seasons in limited time but did manage 25 points with Kalamazoo in 2022-23.
He comes over from Rapid City, Calgary's ECHL affiliate, in exchange for Patrick Bajkov. Bajkov, who spent the previous two years playing in Sweden and Slovakia has been very good in the ECHL, scoring 66 goals and 166 points over 221 games in his career, and will add some scoring depth to Rapid City.
McCarty compared to Swankler will have a harder time breaking in, but will probably get a look during camp to see if he can offer anything, at least to the Marlies.
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