Taylor Receives Qualifying Offer

ONTARIO, Calif. -- The Ontario Reign of the ECHL, proud affiliate of the Los Angeles Kings, announced today that they have submitted qualifying offers to eight former Texas Wildcatter players, including former St. Lawrence forward Max Taylor.

In addition to Taylor, the Reign extended qualifying offers to defensemen John Adams and Michael Grenzy, who played at Clarkson; center Brandon Benedict, left wing Scott Champagne, defenseman Corey LeClair, defenseman David Schulz and goaltender Kris Tebbs. 

Of the eight players given qualifying offers, six players are rated at a +17 rating or higher for the 2007-08 season. Grenzy ended the season with a plus/minus rating of +17 while Taylor compiled a +21 rating and 45 points (25g-20a) in 61 games played.

Each team was entitled to reserve Rights to a maximum of eight (8) Qualified Players. Of these eight (8) Qualified Players, no more than four (4) of the Qualified Players shall be Veterans (260 regular season professional hockey games played as of the start of the upcoming 2008-09 season).

Players will have until August 1 to accept a qualifying offer and players on open Qualifying Offers cannot be traded.

Teams were not required to protect players who signed a Standard Players Contract prior to July 1.

Teams are not allowed to sign more than 24 players to contracts during the summer.

Players that were not signed by July 1 or extended a qualifying offer by July 1 become unrestricted free agents.

A Member extending a valid Qualifying Offer to a Veteran retains the Rights to that Veteran until August 1. After August 1, if the Veteran is not signed to a Standard Player Contract by the Member, the Veteran shall be deemed a Restricted Free Agent and shall be entitled to seek and secure offers of employment from other Members. Restricted Free Agents may not be traded.

When a Restricted Free Agent receives an offer to sign a Standard Player Contract from an Offering Member other than the Member with Rights and the Restricted Free Agent desires to accept the Offer, the Restricted Free Agent and the Offering Member must, within 24 hours, deliver a completed Offer Sheet to the Member with Rights, the League Office and the PHPA. The Member with Rights shall then have seven (7) days after the date it receives the Offer Sheet to exercise its Right to Match. The Right to Match shall expire seven (7) days from the date the Offer Sheet was received but not counting the day of receipt.

If a Restricted Free Agent is not signed to either an Offer Sheet or a Standard Player Contract by a Member by August 31, he shall be deemed an Unrestricted Free Agent.