Rays Announce Multiple Transactions

The South Carolina Stingrays, proud ECHL affiliate of the NHL’s Washington Capitals and AHL’s Hershey Bears, announced multiple roster transactions Monday.

Goaltender Hunter Shepard has been recalled by Hershey, while the Stingrays have agreed to terms with goaltender Matt Jurusik, who has signed a standard ECHL player contract.

In addition, South Carolina has traded defenseman Cole Fraser to the Utah Grizzlies in exchange for future considerations and released forward Graham Knott from his standard player contract.

Shepard, 25, has a 6-5-1 record in 14 appearances with South Carolina during his rookie professional season with a 2.84 goals-against average and a 0.915 save percentage. The Coleraine, Minn. native has played a total of 804 minutes in between the pipes for the Stingrays. Shepard was named the ECHL’s Goaltender of the Month for December after posting a 2-0-1 record in three outings with a 1.89 goals-against average and a save percentage of 0.935.

Prior to turning pro, the 6-foot-1, 210-pound netminder appeared in 119 career NCAA games at the University of Minnesota-Duluth where he went 76-37-5 with 17 shutouts, a 1.94 goals-against average and a save percentage of .922. The backstop guided the Bulldogs to back-to-back NCAA National Championships in 2018 and 2019 and started an NCAA-record 115 straight games from Oct. 21, 2017 to Mar. 7, 2020. He was a three-time Mike Richter Award Finalist and a three-time All-NCHC selection in his illustrious NCAA tenure.

Jurusik, 23, has spent the first two months of his rookie season on a professional tryout agreement with the AHL’s Texas Stars. The 6-foot-2, 195-pound netminder originally agreed to terms with the Idaho Steelheads for the 2020-21 year in October.

A native of La Grange, Ill., Jurusik turned pro this season after a two-year stint at Michigan Technological University (MTU) where he posted a 2.28 goals-against average and a .917 save percentage in 57 appearances. Prior to his time with the Huskies, he began his NCAA career at the University of Wisconsin from 2015-17 and spent the 2017-18 season in the United States Hockey League (USHL) with the Sioux City Musketeers.

Fraser appeared in 18 games for South Carolina after the team acquired him in a trade with the Allen Americans on January 18, posting four points with two goals and two assists.

Knott saw time in 19 games with the Rays after agreeing to terms on January 19, registering five points on three goals and two assists.

The Stingrays embark on a 4-game road trip this week starting in Indy against the Fuel on Wednesday at 7:05 p.m. before three meetings in Wheeling with the Nailers over the weekend. SC returns home to the North Charleston Coliseum for Autism Awareness Night on Wednesday, April 14 against Orlando at 7:05.

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