South Carolina Stingrays

Rookie Alex Gacek Signs with South Carolina

Keeping with the theme of needing new scorers, the South Carolina Stingrays went out and signed Alex Gacek out of Miami University (Ohio). He finished his Senior season as the RedHawks 6th-best scorer at five goals and 13 assists.

He’s got that warrior mentality,” said head coach Ryan Warsofsky. “He plays a 200-foot game and we think he has a bit more scoring touch than he had in college with the way his game translates to the pro game. He’s a smaller guy, almost like a Patrick Gaul, that can bring a lot of energy to the lineup on any given night.”

In 149 career games at Miami, Gacek posted 46 points (16 goals, 30 assists), a +12 rating, and 42 penalty minutes. The Hampton, New Hampshire native helped the RedHawks win the 2012-13 Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) regular seasons championship in 2012-13, and the National Collegiate Hockey Conference’s (NCHC) tournament championship in 2015.

“Everyone I’ve talked to about South Carolina said it’s a second-to-none organization,” said Gacek. “When I talked with Ryan Warsofsky, it was an instant connection and I haven’t heard one negative thing about the Stingrays. That really sold me on signing. I knew I wanted to keep playing after college, and I know the pro game is a little different than the college game, but I’m going to come in and leave everything on the ice. I pride myself on working hard, getting better everyday, and playing every game like it’s my last.”

Gacek landed on the 2015-16 NCHC All-Academic Team to cap off his college career.

Max Wolpoff

Churchill High School graduate (2015) and current Boston University journalism student. Follow me on Twitter (@Max_Wolpoff) for game-day tweets or my random musings about being a college student.

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