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No qualifying offer from Everblades of little concern to Brindley

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The Florida Everblades made their six qualifying offers public on Wednesday, but don’t read too much into who’s not on the list: all-time leading scorer Reggie Berg and veteran defenseman and captain Ryan Brindley.

Team president and director of hockey operations Craig Brush said Berg and Brindley weren’t on the list because they make their homes in Estero and are “likely to only play in our city, so we don’t have to put them on the list.”

Berg could not be reached for comment, but Brindley made the move sound more procedural as well.

“It’s not something that you’re really concerned about,” said Brindley, who has played three seasons for the Blades. “I’m in a situation where I’m not going to go anywhere else.”

Forwards Phil Aucoin and Kevin Bergin and defensemen John Adams, Tyson Teplitsky, Matt Bannan and Chris Lee received the qualifying offers, which were due by Saturday. The Blades could have issued up to eight qualifying offers.

One player not on the list who likely won’t be returning is forward Paul Cabana, who scored 23 goals and added 23 assists last season. Cabana played with a shoulder injury most of the season and underwent surgery after the season. He said he was disappointed he never heard anything from Brush or head coach Gerry Fleming.

“I haven’t spoken to either of them since the day I left Germain (Arena) with my equipment,” said Cabana, 27, who still would not qualify as a veteran (260 professional games minimum) under ECHL rules; he has played 210 games. “It was kind of a slap in the face. The least they could’ve done was called me and told me they weren’t going to qualify me.”

Ryan Brindley of the Florida Everblades argues with referee Joe Ernst after a goal was ruled waved off because the goal post was knocked off as the puck crossed the goal line during a game against the Las Vegas Wranglers at Germain Arena in Estero.

Daily News file photo

Ryan Brindley of the Florida Everblades argues with referee Joe Ernst after a goal was ruled waved off because the goal post was knocked off as the puck crossed the goal line during a game against the Las Vegas Wranglers at Germain Arena in Estero.

Cabana said he most likely will stay in the ECHL, and his agent has talked with Gwinnett’s Jeff Pyle. Gwinnett lost in the Kelly Cup Finals to Alaska.

Cabana said other teams also were interested.

“I want to win this thing, and I want to go to a contender,” said Cabana, who is expected to be fully recovered by September, probably too late for him to try to sign with a European team.

Lee, 26 and an All-Star last year, finished his second pro season, as did Aucoin, 24. Teplitsky, 24, was a late-season acquisition from Dayton, while Bannan, 25, was signed right out of college near the end of the regular season. Adams, 23, shuttled back and forth between the American Hockey League and the Everblades.

Bergin, who has played 303 professional games, qualifies as a veteran. The other five who received qualifying offers aren’t even halfway to the 260 limit.

“It’s a process of elimination,” Brush termed the process of choosing players to send qualifying offers.

“All of the people on the list are ones we felt comfortable making the offer to and would be interested in retaining,” he said.

The offers must remain open until Aug. 1. After that date, a player can sign for any salary or become a free agent. If that player is a veteran, they become a restricted free agent. If that veteran is offered a contract by another team after Aug. 1, the original team has the right to match it. If restricted free agents aren’t signed by Aug. 31, they become unrestricted.

All-Star forward Ernie Hartlieb and defenseman Steve Czech already have signed with the Blades, so they didn’t need to be given qualifying offers. Hartlieb and Czech, plus the six who were issued qualifying offers were all on the Blades’ 13-player protected list last month.

Berg, Brindley, Cabana, Brandon Coalter and forward John Ronan were the five players who were on the protected list, but not issued qualifying offers or had been re-signed. Ronan scored 12 goals and added 14 assists in 68 games last year.

Hartlieb qualifies as a veteran, as will Bergin, Berg and Brindley, assuming the latter two are back, giving the Blades the league maximum of four.

Coalter, who indicated he would retire after this past season, also could come back. He does not qualify as a veteran.

“We haven’t talked to him yet,” Brush said. “He was out of town last week and I’m not there this week. We’ll have some conversations with him at some point.”

Last week, the Blades lost all-star and leading scorer Daniel Sisca to a team in Italy and defenseman Corey Neilson to a team in England.

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