The Hershey Bears announced Tuesday that the club has re-signed goaltender Parker Milner and forward Steve Whitney to one-year, American Hockey League contracts for the 2019-20 season. In addition to playing with each other during the last two seasons with Hershey and South Carolina, the two spent four years together at Boston College from 2009-13 and were part of two NCAA national championship teams in 2010 and 2012.
Milner, 28, posted a record of 19-17-3 with a 2.95 goals-against average and a .912 save percentage in 40 games with South Carolina during the 2018-19 year. In addition, the 6-foot-1, 187-pound goaltender recorded a 2.74 GAA and a .914 save percentage in the Stingrays' opening-round loss to the Orlando Solar Bears in the 2019 Kelly Cup Playoffs.
The Pittsburgh, Pa. native also appeared in three games for Hershey this season, recording a 2-1-0 record with a 2.28 goals-against and a .931 save percentage. Milner, who will begin his seventh professional season in the fall, was named the ECHL's Goaltender of the Year following the 2017-18 regular season with the Rays when he posted a 28-7-3 record with a 1.86 goals-against average and a .929 save percentage as well as three shutouts.
Milner has played in 29 career AHL games with Hershey, the Bridgeport Sound Tigers and Iowa Wild, earning a 12-12-1 record to go along with a 3.14 goals-against average and a .899 save percentage. In 14 games with Hershey during the past three seasons combined, Milner has a record of 6-7-1.
The goaltender is 123-73-14 overall in his ECHL career, with a 2.47 goals-against and a .915 save percentage in 215 games with South Carolina, Missouri, Quad City, and Stockton. In 2017, Milner led the Rays to a Kelly Cup Finals appearance while playing in 22 games and earned a goals-against of 2.30 and a .919 save percentage.
Whitney initially joined Hershey on a tryout during the team's training camp and later signed an AHL contract with the Bears for the 2018-19 season. The winger saw action in 60 games and posted a scoring total of 16 points on nine goals and seven assists that included three game-winning tallies. Whitney then suited up in all nine of the team's postseason contests, adding a goal and two assists.
Also entering his seventh professional season, Whitney was with the Rays during 2017-18 and finished second on the roster with 54 points (18 goals, 36 assists) in 59 games.
The 27-year-old Reading, Mass. native has put up 43 points (22 goals, 21 assists) in 133 career AHL games while playing for the Bears and Norfolk Admirals. He also has 125 points (49 goals, 76 assists) in 150 career ECHL games while playing for the Stingrays, Admirals and Florida Everblades.The 5-foot-7, 162-pound scorer also previously attended Lawrence Academy with Stingrays head coach Steve Bergin.
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