AHL: Utica Comets Send Jace Isley To Hershey Bears

The Utica Comets have made a trade with the Hersey Bears, trading forward Jace Isley to the Bears for defenseman Dmitry Osipov. This trade fills needs for each team as the Comets need help on the blue line with Andy Welinski being released, and the Bears will likely need a forward with their ECHL affiliate, the South Carolina Stingrays are dealing with injuries up front.

What This Means for the Comets

In Osipov, the Comets get a defenseman with eight seasons of AHL experience, six games of Calder Cup Playoff experience, and a Calder Cup Championship with the Bears. Over those eight seasons, he has put up eight goals and 11 assists for 19 points in 192 career games. If Osipov plays in five games with the Comets, he will officially be labeled as a veteran according to AHL roster rules, but that wouldn’t take effect until next season . The move will allow the 28-year-old Russian defenseman to get some playing time after appearing in just four games with the Bears this season.

What This Means for the Bears

For Hersey, they get a power forward in Isley. He has spent the majority of his young career in the ECHL, playing in 64 games with the Adirondack Thunder and scoring seven goals and 20 assists for 27 points. Isley has one goal in seven career games at the AHL level with the Comets. The 22-year-old is a player who can slot almost anywhere in the lineup and should prove to be a solid addition to the Bears roster. Prior to going pro, Isley spent five seasons with the Red Deer Rebels of the WHL, where he put up 52 goals and 51 assists for 103 points in 205 games.