Atlantic Youth Hockey League

USHL Tenders Two From AYHL U16-National Champions 

Release Date : 05/06/2013

PITTSTON, PA – On the morning of the 2013 USHL Draft Phase 1, the United States Hockey League, the highest level of amateur hockey in the United States has again turned to the AYHL when it came time to sign tenders in advance of what was formerly known as the Futures Draft.  In 2012, the first year of the tendering process, the U16 Avalanche lost a pair of players to Cedar Rapids (Chris Birdsall (’96 birth year/Glen Rock, NJ) and Youngstown (J.J. Piccinich (’96 birth year/Paramus, NJ) and now in year two, Cedar Rapids and Indiana have come calling on the U16 National Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Junior Knights for a pair of players. 

Cedar Rapids selected defenseman Ivan Provorov (’97 birth year/Moscow, PA), forfeiting their first round pick in the Phase 1 draft.  Provorov was the second leading scorer in the regular season for Head Coach Oleksandr Vasko. 

“Ivan will be a great asset to Cedar Rapids,” commented Junior Knights General Manager and Director of Hockey Operations Justin Lyle.  “He is very hard working and has first class character both on and off the ice.”

Indiana chose forward Denis Smirnov (’97 birth year/Dunmore, PA) with their second tender selection, forfeiting their second round pick in the Phase 1 draft.  Smirnov was the leading scorer for the Junior Knights with 44 points (23G 21A) in 21 games played. 

“Denis is a very skilled forward with unreal upside,” said Lyle.  “He has a good chance to be a major contributor for the Ice.”

The two players were among the nine players signed to tenders by USHL teams and these players will play a minimum of 50% of their team’s games during the 13-14 season.  Over the two years that the tendering process has become a part of the USHL Draft, 21 players have been signed to tenders, 4 of which have come directly from AYHL member organizations. 

“The Knights organization wishes both players much success in their future hockey endeavors,” Lyle added.  “This is a proud moment for our franchise.”