Augusta Lynx Head Coach Bob Ferguson announced today that the Lynx have added former Cornell forward Shane Hynes, who was assigned by the Portland Pirates of the American Hockey League.  Hynes, 24, played in 49 games with the Augusta Lynx last season, scoring 45 points.  The forward from Calgary, Alberta began this season on Portland's roster, but had yet to play a game this season due to injury.  He is expected to be in the line-up on Friday against Florida for his first action of the season.

Hynes had an excellent season last year with the Lynx.  The 6'3, 225 lbs. forward averaged almost a point per game.  Hynes posted five three-point games throughout the season, including his only hat-trick of the year back on December 15, 2006, in a home game against Florida.  His best month came in February 2007 when he scored 12 points in eight games played.  Hynes was selected to represent the Lynx in the 2007 ECHL All-Star Game, however did not participate due to injury.

Hynes was a 2003, 3rd round draft pick of the Anaheim Ducks.  He played three years of NCAA Division I hockey for the Cornell University Big Red, where he was teammates with former Lynx goaltender Dave McKee.  During his junior season in 2004-05, Hynes was second on the team in scoring with 28 points in 33 games played.  Following the conclusion of his junior year, Hynes decided to turn pro and spent the 2005-06 season with the Portland Pirates in the AHL, playing in 12 games.  During his time with the Lynx last year, Hynes was called up to Portland once, playing in five games during the regular season.

To make room for Hynes, the Lynx released forward James Brannigan, who was signed back on December 27th with the Lynx.  Brannigan played in 20 games with the Lynx and scored eight points.  Brannigan's best performance came in an 8-6 win at Gwinnett back on January 29th when he had three points and was +4.  However, the forward from Brooklyn, New York, hadn't scored a goal in his last seven games and was a combined -4 in the last two losses for the Lynx in Florida.