Published Monday, Aug. 31, 2009 | 1:09 p.m.
Updated Monday, Aug. 31, 2009 | 4:15 p.m.
Expanded hockey coverage
The Las Vegas Wranglers added a little toughness to their forwards today in the form of 6-foot-2, 205-pound Ryan Weston.
Weston, who is entering into his second full professional season, joins the Wranglers after spending last year with the Albany River Rats of the American Hockey League.
In 63 games with Albany, the 25-year-old Henniker, New Hampshire native notched 16 points and 79 penalty minutes.
Prior to turning pro, Weston played four years at Boston University. In 146 college games he amassed 26 points and 133 penalty minutes. Weston played alongside former Wranglers defenseman Dan Spang at BU from 2004-2006.
"He’s a guy that goes to the net extremely hard," said Wranglers head coach and general manager Ryan Mougenel. "He doesn’t play with reckless abandon, but he plays hard and he gives us an element that we need. He is a player that comes from a great college program and he played a full season in the America league. That type of experience will be huge for us."
In addition to Weston, the Wranglers also agreed to terms with defenseman Craig Switzer.
Las Vegas had previously acquired the rights to Switzer in a trade with the Elmira Jackals for forward Tim Spencer on Aug. 14.
Switzer posted 17 points in 64 games for the Jackals last season. The Nashville Predators selected the 6-foot-1, 200-pound Peachland, British Columbia native in the ninth round (No. 275) of the 2004 NHL Entry Draft.
The Wranglers open the regular season at the Orleans Arena on Oct. 16 against Utah at 7:05 p.m.
The Orleans Arena, a Boyd Gaming facility located just west of the Las Vegas Strip, is one of the nation’s leading mid-sized arenas, and was recently ranked No. 1 in the United States and No. 5 internationally among venues of similar size by Venues Today Magazine.
The Arena hosts more than 200 events each year, including concerts by top names like Carrie Underwood, Daughtry, Van Halen, Brooks & Dunn, Black Eyed Peas, Akon and Rihanna; family favorites like The Harlem Globetrotters and Circus Spectacular; and a wide variety of sporting events, including NCAA basketball tournaments, the West Coast Conference and Western Athletic Conference Basketball Championships, mixed martial arts with Superior Cage Combat, and major motorsports events.
The arena serves as home to the Las Vegas Wranglers professional ECHL hockey team, the Las Vegas Legends professional indoor soccer team, and the Lingerie Football League’s Las Vegas Sin. Stay connected to the Orleans Arena on Facebook (www.facebook.com/orleansarena) and on Twitter (@orleansarena).
Steve Silver can be reached at 948-7822 or [email protected]
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