Published Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2009 | 9:30 a.m.
Updated Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2009 | 11:27 a.m.
Hagel
Hockey Talk
Canadian Thanksgiving and opening night jitters
Las Vegas Sun reporter Steve Silver sits down with Las Vegas Wranglers head coach and general manager Ryan Mougenel to discuss a wide array of topics including the history of Canadian thanksgiving, Mougenel's bed building skills and of course opening night this Friday.
Expanded hockey coverage
The Las Vegas Wranglers are in the process of adding some brains and brawn to the roster.
Head coach and general manager Ryan Mougenel is expected to announce Wednesday the addition of 24-year-old forward Kyle Hagel. Hagel asked for and was granted his release from a tryout agreement with the Cincinnati Cyclones earlier this week.
Hagel, a Hamilton, Ontario native, was a three-time ECAC All-Academic Team member at Princeton. As assistant captain his senior year with the Tigers, Hagel also earned an Academic All-Ivy selection.
After graduating from Princeton in 2008, Hagel began his professional career last season with the Fresno Falcons where he notched eight points and 97 penalty minutes in 23 games.
When the Falcons folded in the middle of the season due to financial trouble, the 6-foot, 205-pound forward headed to the Reading Royals where he posted five points and 46 penalty minutes in 15 games. He also saw limited action in three games with the Rochester Americans of the American Hockey League.
"Kyle Hagel is a solid human being," Mougenel said. "A Princeton grad, real bright kid, but really tough and can play the game the way I think the game should be played. He has a contagious attitude. He works extremely hard and it rubs off on everybody. So I’m really excited about Kyle."
The Wranglers open the regular season against the Utah Grizzlies Friday at 7 p.m. at the Orleans Arena.
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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