Colorado Adds All-Star Esdale

WINDSOR, Colo. - The defending Central Hockey League President's Cup Champion Colorado Eagles announced today the signing of all-star defenseman Paul Esdale, who played at Brown. Esdale becomes the third defenseman in the Eagles' defensive corps with CHL All-Star credentials.

"Paul is a guy I have known for a long time through my coaching relationship with his father," said Eagles Head Coach Chris Stewart. "He is a guy that wanted a chance to win and sacrificed a lot to come to an already talented defensive unit."

Last season, Esdale, an Edmonton, Alberta native, started the season with the Youngstown SteelHounds, helping the Hounds to the best start in the CHL through the month of November. Esdale then left the team to play hockey in Europe. At the time of his departure, he led all CHL defensemen in points with seven goals and 26 points after 21 games played, and his team spent much of the first half of the season in first place in the Northeast Division.

In December of 2006, the 5-foot-10-inch, 175-pound blueliner jettisoned for Germany where he finished the season playing on two teams, the Essen Mosquitoes and the Heilbronner Falcons -- winning the German Oberliga Championship (Gold Medal) with the latter. During the 2007 championship run, Esdale led the team as the highest scoring defenseman in the Oberliga playoffs. Combined, Esdale scored a goal and added eight assists in 14 games during the regular season, and added another eight points in 11 games for Heilbronner during the postseason.

Entering his fifth season pro, Esdale started his professional career with the Cincinnati Mighty Ducks of the American Hockey League before heading south to Florida in 2003-04. With Florida in the East Coast Hockey League, he was plus-11 with 16 points, helping the Everblades to the ECHL finals.

The following year, Esdale led the Wichita Thunder to the conference finals and his 22 goals and 69 points were good enough to earn him the leagues' Most Outstanding Defenseman award. That same season, the defenseman was named to the Dodge CHL All-Star game where his plus-8 was a game high. He was also named to the All-CHL team in 2004-05. He has spent much of the past two seasons playing in Europe.

Esdale earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree at Brown, where, as a senior, he was named assistant captain of the Bears. From 1999-2003, he led all Bears defenseman in scoring.

Esdale is the ninth defenseman added to the Colorado Eagles training camp roster.