The Adirondack Phantoms recalled defenseman Matt Konan from the Trenton Titans on Tuesday evening, sending Matt Mangene down to the ECHL in his place.
Konan, 21, is in his first professional season. In fact, he and Mangene were signed on the exact same day last April. Konan was injured for much of the year so far, and he rehabbed with the Phantoms in Glens Falls for much of the early part of the year. He’s familiar with the territory and the team. He was sent to Trenton on November 19 after he was cleared to play, and he’s played in five games since.
With Marc-Andre Bourdon (illness) and Oliver Lauridsen (upper-body) out of the lineup in Adirondack, Konan becomes an extra defenseman for them and could see his way into action sooner than later.
Mangene, a college free agent signed by the Flyers our of Maine, played just four games so far this season for the Phantoms before suffering a concussion in October, according to the Post Star. The move will almost certainly get him more ice time, and that’s a good thing, considering those four games brought his career professional total up to just nine games played. He has one assist and zero goals in those nine games.
Mangene played both forward and defense at Maine but projects as a forward in the pros. As a 23-year-old, his entry-level contract is only two years in length and expires at the end of the 2013-14 season, so time is of the essence when it comes to Mangene’s development.
