Boise, ID (7/31/18) – Steelheads Head Coach and Director of Hockey Operations Neil Graham announced on Tuesday that the Idaho Steelheads have agreed to terms with forward Kyle Schempp on an ECHL contract for the 2018-19 season.
Schempp, 24, will begin his third full professional season after spending the 2017-18 campaign in the American Hockey League with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers. A sixth-round draft pick of the New York Islanders in 2014, Schempp scored three goals and six points in 33 games with Bridgeport last season. He also appeared in one ECHL game with the Worcester Railers, notching two assists.
“Kyle is an excellent two-way player who is very strong in the face-off circle,” said Graham. “He’s a guy you want on the ice during the last minute of the game whether you are up a goal or down a goal.”
The Saginaw, Michigan native has played in 46 AHL games with Bridgeport since the end of the 2015-16 season, totaling three goals, nine points, and a plus-4 rating. The 5-foot-11 forward also has appeared in 44 ECHL games with Worcester and Kansas City, collecting nine goals and 23 points.
“I’m excited for the opportunity to come to Idaho. I’ve heard nothing but great things about the organization and the city of Boise,” said Schempp. “I’m looking forward to this season and competing for a championship.”
In Schempp’s longest ECHL stint, 43 games with the Mavericks in 2016-17, he registered 100 shots on goal and on seven occasions had more than five shots in a game.
“Kyle is hungry and motivated coming off of his entry-level deal, and we’re excited to work with him,” said Graham.
Schempp played three seasons of NCAA Division I hockey at Ferris State University, where he was named to the WCHA All-Rookie Team in 2014 and won a WCHA championship in 2016. In 121 college games, Schempp collected 29 goals and 66 points.
Schempp is the tenth player announced by the Steelheads this off-season.
Photo: Bridgeport Sound Tigers
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