The Rockford IceHogs, the Blackhawks’ AHL affiliate, announced Tuesday that they signed defenseman Darren Raddysh to a one-year contract.
Raddysh, 21, spent the last five seasons in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) with the Erie Otters. He was awarded the league’s top defenseman accolade after finishing last season with 16 goals and 65 assists in 62 regular season games. Raddysh helped the Otters become the 2017 J. Ross Robertson Cup champions, leading all defensemen in goals (8), assists (14) and points (22) in 22 postseason games.
Raddysh had 41 goals and 143 assists over his five-year OHL career and is the Otters’ all-time leader in points and assists among defensemen.
Although Raddysh is not expected to be NHL-ready anytime soon, it’s a nice addition to the Blackhawks’ prospect pool given the team is likely to lose defenseman Trevor van Riemsdyk in the expansion draft.
