October 16, 2008

Tigers Well Represented on Pro Level

The 2008-09 professional hockey seasons are underway and Princeton is well represented with 10 former players starting the season on rosters either in the NHL, AHL or ECHL. George Parros and Jeff Halpern again are on NHL rosters to begin the year.

Parros is beginning his fourth NHL season and his third with the Anaheim Ducks. A 2007 Stanley Cup champion in Anaheim, Parros already has a goal to his credit in four games on the young season. Eight-year league veteran Jeff Halpern joins him in the NHL. Halpern is currently recovering from a leg injury and will rejoin his teammates in Tampa Bay during the season.

Four other Tigers are currently on two-way contracts with an AHL franchise and their parent team in the NHL. That group includes Mike Moore, an All-America last season at Princeton, who is in his first season in the San Jose Sharks organization. Moore was one of the final players sent down following training camp and is now with the Sharks’ AHL affiliate in Worcester. Brett Westgarth, a former teammate of Moore’s at Princeton, is also a teammate of Moore’s in Worcester after a strong AHL season last year with the Iowa Stars.

Westgarth’s brother Kevin is also playing in the AHL with the Manchester Monarchs. Kevin Westgarth also saw considerable playing time in the NHL preseason with Los Angeles and is starting this season in the AHL. The final Princetonian currently playing in the AHL is Darroll Powe, who is in his second season with the Philadelphia Phantoms and this season is serving as an assistant captain with the club after seeing considerable playing time with the Flyers in the preseason.

Princeton also has four players competing at the ECHL, all of which are playing for the same team in Fresno. The group includes: Daryl Marcoux, who played in Fresno last season; Kyle Hagel, who won an ECAC Championship with Princeton last year; Grant Goeckner-Zoeller, who played in the ECHL for Dayton last season; and Dustin Sproat, who is returning to hockey after not having played competitively since a stint with Reading of the AHL in 2005-06.