ITHACA, N.Y. — Senior forward Jake Weidner has signed a contract to play the 2017-18 season with the Iserlohn Roosters of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (German Ice Hockey League), the team announced Friday.
Weidner served as the Big Red’s captain during a 2016-17 season which saw the team return to the NCAA stage after a five-year absence. He finished third on the team in scoring with eight goals and 16 assists for 24 points, and he was named the ECAC Hockey Best Defensive Forward.
For the entire second half of the season, Weidner was by a wide margin the national leader in blocked shots per game for forwards (2.00). He was also the Big Red’s faceoff ace, where he led the team with a 57.6 winning percentage. He ranks fourth in the nation in average faceoffs per game (25.2), as he could be found taking most defensive-zone draws. He also ranked 11th in ECAC Hockey games with a plus-10 rating, which is particularly impressive considering he centered a line that was typically matched up against the opposition’s most potent lines.
Weidner joins an Iserlohn squad that is one of 14 teams in the DEL, which is widely regarded as one of Europe’s top leagues. He becomes the fourth member of his class to officially sign with a professional team since the Big Red’s season ended with the program’s 20th trip to the NCAA tournament. Defenseman Patrick McCarron (Grand Rapids Griffins) and forward Matt Buckles (Springfield Thunderbirds) are in the AHL, and goaltender Mitch Gillam signed a deal for the rest of the season in the ECHL (Orlando Solar Bears).
