Former Viper Strong Offered Qualifying Offer From Wings:

Former Vernon Vipers forward, Dean Strong is one of eight players for the ECHL Kalamazoo Wings who has been offered a qualifying offer. Strong who collected (3-4-7) in just six regular season games finished his second season with the Wings. Strong played a one season in Vernon (2004-05).

Dean Strong's Player Profile:

http://www.wingsstadium.com/18_strong.htm

This is posted on the Wings website:

K-WINGS ANNOUNCE QUALIFYING OFFERS

Kalamazoo Makes Offers to Eight Players

July 5, 2011 - Mike Modugno

Director of Public Relations and Broadcaster

Kalamazoo, MI- The Kalamazoo Wings, proud member of the ECHL, two-time defending North Division Champions and reigning Eastern Conference Champions and affiliate of the National Hockey League’s New York Islanders and American Hockey League’s Bridgeport Sound Tigers, announce the club’s ECHL qualifying offer list

Each team was entitled to reserve the rights to a maximum of eight qualified players. Of the eight qualified players, no more than four could be veterans (260 regular season professional hockey games played as of the start of the upcoming 2011-12 season). Players on open qualifying offers cannot be traded.

The qualifying offer must remain open for acceptance until August 1st at which time the qualifying offer becomes null and void and the team may sign the qualified player to any salary or may elect to take no further action. Teams that extend a valid qualifying offer to a non-veteran player shall retain the rights to that qualified player for one playing season.

A team that extends a valid qualifying offer to a veteran player will retain the rights to that veteran until August 1st. After August 1st, if the veteran player is not signed to a contract by the team, the veteran shall be deemed a restricted free agent and shall be entitled to seek and secure offers of employment from other ECHL teams. Restricted free agents may not be traded. When a restricted free agent receives a contract offer from a team other than the team with the player’s rights and the restricted free agent wishes to accept the contract offer, the restricted free agent and the offering member must, within 24 hours, notify the ECHL, the team with the player’s rights and the Professional Hockey Players’ Association. The member with the player’s rights shall have seven days after the date it is notified to exercise its right to match the contract offer.

If a restricted free agent is not signed to either an offer sheet or a contract by an ECHL team by August 31st, the player shall be deemed an unrestricted free agent.

Players who had already signed a contract by July 1st did not need to receive a qualifying offer.

The following are the players the K-Wings made qualifying offers to:

# PLAYER POS HT WT L/R DOB BIRTHPLACE

7 Aaron Clarke LW 5-9 185 L 10/02/82 Peterborough, Ontario

13 Brandon Svendsen F 5-10 184 R 04/11/85 Mecer, California

16 Joe Charlebois D 6-1 219 R 02/18/86 Potsdam, New York

18 Dean Strong F 5-8 180 R 07/17/85 Mississauga, Ontario

19 Patrick Asselin LW 6-0 195 L 07/02/87 Peterborough, Ontario

30 Riley Gill G 6-1 215 L 01/01/85 Northfield, Minnesota

49 A.J. Thelen D 6-3 212 L 03/11/86 Savage, Minnesota

72 Darryl Lloyd C 5-11 195 L 02/10/84 Pickering, Ontario

For more information about the K-Wings qualfying offers, please contact Mike Modugno, director of public relations/broadcaster at (269) 349-9772 extension 220.