Stingrays agree to terms with Joey Leach

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. – The South Carolina Stingrays, ECHL affiliate of the NHL’s Washington Capitals and AHL’s Hershey Bears, announced they have agreed to terms with defenseman Joey Leachfor the 2017-18 season.

Leach split his time between South Carolina and Hershey last year, playing 35 games with the Stingrays and 18 with the Bears before appearing in 22 playoff games with South Carolina during the team’s run to the Kelly Cup Finals.

The 25-year-old finished the regular season with 20 points (4g-16a) for South Carolina and three assists with Hershey. He added six points (1g-5a) in his 22 postseason contests.

A native of Wadena, Saskatchewan, Leach has totaled 204 career ECHL games with South Carolina, Fort Wayne and Bakersfield totaling 64 points (12g-52a). He has also contributed seven assists in 40 career AHL games for Hershey, Lake Erie and Oklahoma City.

A third-round selection of the Calgary Flames in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, Leach played four years of junior hockey in the Western Hockey League with the Kootenay Ice where he was an offensive threat from the blue line. In his final two seasons, he totaled 77 points.