San Diego Gulls Sign Four Players
Jul 2, 2024The San Diego Gulls announced today that the American Hockey League (AHL) club has signed center Ryan Carpenter and defenseman Roland McKeown to two-year standard player contracts (SPCs) through 2025-26, and defensemen Anthony Costantini and Dillon Heatherington to one-year SPCs through 2024-25.
Carpenter, 33 (1/18/91), appeared in 62 games for the San Jose Sharks in 2023-24, tallying 5-7=12 points with six PIM. He also skated in five AHL games for the San Jose Barracuda, posting 3-3=6 points and two PIM in five AHL games. The 6-foot-1, 198-pound forward has appeared in 392 career NHL games across nine seasons with San Jose Sharks, Vegas, Chicago, Calgary and New York Rangers, recording 32-52=84 points with 122 PIM.
The Oviedo, Florida native has also skated in 262 AHL games with Worcester, San Jose and Hartford and has collected 68-112=180 points with a +49 rating and 135 PIM. Carpenter has also earned 13-14=27 points, a +12 rating and 16 PIM in 32 career Calder Cup Playoff games. In 2015-16, Carpenter was awarded the Yanick Dupre Memorial Award, which is given to a player for his outstanding contributions to his local community and charitable organizations.
McKeown, 28 (1/20/96), has appeared in 16 career NHL games with Nashville and Carolina, recording three assists with a +4 rating. The 6-1, 195-pound defenseman helped the Charlotte Checkers to a Calder Cup championship in 2019 and has recorded 20 or more points in each of the last six seasons in the American Hockey League (AHL). In 2023-24 with the Milwaukee Admirals, McKeown earned 6-17=23 points with a +16 rating and 56 penalty minutes (PIM) while adding 2-2=4 points in 14 postseason games.
Originally selected by Los Angeles in the second round (50th overall) of the 2014 NHL Draft, McKeown has collected 31-118=149 points with a +108 rating and 303 PIM in 461 career AHL games with Milwaukee, Colorado and Charlotte. He has also appeared in 60 career Calder Cup Playoff contests, earning 5-19=24 points. A native of Listowel, Ontario, McKeown has represented Canada at numerous international tournaments, including the 2016 World Junior Championship, and 2013 and 2014 U-18 World Championships, earning bronze in 2014 while serving as captain.
Costantini, 21 (8/4/02), collected two assists in eight games for San Diego in 2023-24. In 55 games for the Tulsa Oilers of the ECHL, he posted 3-16=19 points in 55 games. He made his AHL debut Jan. 26, 2024 at Iowa and collected his first AHL point and assist Jan. 27, 2024 at Iowa.
The Hamilton, Ontario native recorded 11-58=69 points with 50 PIM and a +33 rating in 193 career Ontario Hockey League (OHL) games with the Ottawa 67’s. He set career highs in 2022-23, posting 7-29=36 points with 12 PIM and a +26 rating in 67 games. In addition, he led team defensemen in games played and ranked second in assists and tied for third in goals. He added two assists in nine 2023 OHL Playoff games as Ottawa advanced to the Second Round before falling to the Peterborough Petes. In 13 career postseason contests, Costantini collected three points – all assists – and two PIM. The defenseman was teammates with current Anaheim Ducks defenseman Pavel Mintyukov.
The 6-1, 185-pound defenseman made his OHL debut in 2019-20, posting 0-7=7 points with 22 PIM and a +21 rating in 59 games. He ranked first among the team’s first-year blueliners in games played and finished second in points and tied for second in assists.
Heatherington, 29 (5/9/95), has appeared in 23 career NHL games with Dallas and Ottawa, picking up two assists (0-2=2), 33 PIM and a +3 rating. Originally selected by Columbus in the second round (50th overall) of the 2013 NHL Draft, Heatherington spent 2023-24 with the Belleville Senators of the AHL, where he posted 3-7=10 points with 31 PIM and a +9 rating in 60 games. In three seasons with Belleville, including two as captain (2022-24), the 6-foot-2, 232-pound defenseman tallied 9-29=38 points with 116 PIM and a +32 rating in 165 games.
Heatherington has recorded 22-105=127 points, 394 PIM and a +59 rating in 478 career AHL games with Belleville, Texas, Lake Erie, Cleveland and Springfield. He helped Lake Erie to a Calder Cup championship in 2016, posting three assists (0-3=3) in 15 Calder Cup Playoff contests. He also aided Texas in winning the Western Conference in 2019, where he recorded three assists (0-3=3) in 21 games. In 38 career Calder Cup Playoff games, he has eared 1-6=7 points with 24 PIM. A Calgary, Alberta native, Heatherington helped Team Canada earn gold at both at the 2015 World Junior Championship and 2013 U-18 World Championship.