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Ex-Mallard brings 'Hammer' to Flames

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By Craig DeVrieze | Tuesday, July 22, 2008 |

A former Quad-City Mallard likely will take the ice for the Quad-City Flames this coming season.

Jonathan Tremblay, a heavyweight fighter who played in just 37 games during nearly two-thirds of a season with the Mallards in 2005-2006, was one of two players signed to AHL contracts on Tuesday.

Also signed for the AHL club by the parent Calgary Flames was defenseman Dan Spang, a third-year AHL veteran.

Spang spent the last two seasons with the Worcester Sharks of the AHL. Tremblay played three games with the AHL Sharks two years ago, and spent the season in Worcester last year.

Still, Tremblay is a fifth-year professional who has seen action in just 21 AHL games over parts of three seasons. He played in a career-high 37 for Worcester last year, collecting an assist and 37 penalty minutes.

He had two assists and 62 minutes in the box during his five-month United Hockey League stint with the Mallards three years ago, when his reputation for toughness resulted in too few foes who were willing to drop their gloves and his slowness on skates limited his number of regular shifts.

Nicknamed “The Hammer,’’ Tremblay collected 136 penalty minutes, plus the only two goals of his professional career, as a Johnstown Chiefs rookie in the rough-and-tumble ECHL in 2004-2005. Two years ago, he amassed 133 penalty minutes in 37 games with the ECHL’s Fresno Falcons.

He joins Pete Vandermeer, one of the AHL’s career penalty minutes leaders, in Q-C lineup that arguably could challenge any in the AHL for toughness.

“With the AHL’s 20-man roster, we can dress some added toughness,” Calgary director of player personnel Duane Sutter said in a release. “Tremblay and Peter Vandermeer will bring that to our lineup every night.”

Spang, a former second-round NHL draft pick by the San Jose Sharks, will bring offensive skills to the Q-C back end.

He scored eight goals and delivered 23 assists for Worcester last year, following up on a rookie campaign that saw him score four goals and 25 points in 48 games the year before.

He had 20 goals and 50 assists as a collegian at Boston University.

“He showed good offensive upside there, and in two years with Worcester,” Sutter said. “He can bring that to our team in the Quad-Cities.”

Last year’s Flames defensemen contributed a total of 17 goals all season.

Craig DeVrieze can be contacted at (563) 333-2610 or cdevrieze@qctimes.com.