Niagara men’s hockey alum Tyler Gotto (’10) has become the latest Purple Eagle to join the professional ranks, signing a contract to play with the Toledo Walleye of the East Coast Hockey League. The Walleye are the ECHL affiliate of the 2010 Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks and the Detroit Redwings.
“Tyler has been a role model on and off the ice during his career at Niagara,” head coach Dave Burkholder said. “He is an outstanding player and even better person. I wish him well as he starts his well-deserved pro career.”
The six foot tall blueliner from Calgary, Alberta had a solid career at Niagara, accumulating 18 goals, 62 assists and 80 points in 141 games. Gotto earned a plethora of College Hockey America accolades, including being named to the 2007 CHA All-Rookie Team and three consecutive All-CHA Second Team honors (2008-10). Gotto went out with a bang, as during his senior year he set a career-high in goals (11), points (25) and power-play goals (3).
The blueliner was part of many special memories for the Purple Eagles, including the 2007-08 team that advanced to the NCAA Tournament after claiming the 2008 CHA Tournament on home-ice.
Gotto is just one of many Purple Eagles who are playing professional hockey, including Sean Bentivoglio (Bridgeport – AHL), Jim Burichin (Texas – CHL), Matt Caruana (Gwinnett – ECHL), Barret Ehgoetz (Cincinnati – ECHL), Andrew Lackner (Mississippi – CHL), Scott Langdon (Reading – ECHL), Juliano Pagliero (Italy), Les Reaney (Rapid City – CHL), Vince Rocco (Italy), Kyle Rogers (Toronto – AHL), Armando Scarlato (Flint – IHL), Dan Sullivan (Italy), Joe Tallari (Italy) and Bernie Sigrist (Switzerland).
