The Colorado Eagles have signed two forwards on Monday to one-year AHL contracts. The forwards are Rilen Kovacevic and Evan Friesen. What the Contracts mean is that they cannot go any higher than playing for the Eagles without signing a new contract for the Colorado Avalanche. The Eagles may assign them to the Utah Grizzlies in the ECHL. Both players happen to be going to Avalanche Development Camp starting on Tuesday.

Rilen Kovacevic spent last season split between two teams in the Western Hockey League in Canada. He tallied a career high 26 goals and 33 assists in 60 WHL games. This was all after being traded from the Moose Jaw Warriors to the Prince Albert Raiders. The previous season, Kovacevic won the WHL Championship with the Warriors. During the playoff run, Kovacevic posted four goals and 11 assists in 20 games.

Evan Friesen most recently played for the ECHL Utah Grizzlies after finishing his career in the WHL. In eight games with the Grizzlies, Friesen tallied his first professional goal and assist on the same night against the Rapid City Rush (CGY). Prior to joining the Grizzlies last season, he was playing for the Wenatchee Wild of the WHL and serving as their captain. He saw career highs in both goals with 32 and assists with 29. The Wild have a long history of successful players, often with a player or two in the draft every year. In 2001, the Avalanche drafted Marek Svatos, a notable alumnus, in the seventh round.

Both players will bring some youth to the organization, but need to build on their previous experience. There is a lot of talent here, but it is unsure if it will translate to the AHL game. So these two will probably see very little time with the Eagles. They will likely spend much of their season with the Utah Grizzlies to gain professional experience.

Keep up to date with all of the Colorado Eagles transactions with our Player Tracker!