Generals land Mallette

Generals sign bruising defenseman
Posted by Brendan Savage
July 17, 2007 22:28PM
Categories: Breaking News



He's 6-foot-4, weighs 230 pounds, has averaged 243 penalty minutes during a seven-year pro career, can skate a regular shift and is reportedly a great guy to have in the dressing room.

Today, he's a Flint General.

The Generals landed the type of defenseman every team covets when they signed bruising blue-liner Kris Mallette to anchor their defense.

Mallette, who helped the Laredo Bucks reach the Central Hockey League playoff finals last season, is a former teammate of Generals coach Kevin Kerr. They played together in Elmira in 2002-03, when Mallette had 311 PIM.

"He's everything that we were looking for," Kerr said Tuesday. "He's got great toughness, he's a great team player, he's great in the locker room. All the intangibles that go along with team chemistry, that's what he is.

"He's going to be a guy who can move guys from the front of the net. I feel that was something we didn't have last year. He's a guy who fits that mold. Ryan Jorde came in late in the year but broke his finger, so it was hard to tell.

"Outside of that, he's a quality person and good team guy."

Can he fight?

"He can handle himself," Kerr said. "He's a big team guy. That's what you need to win. To win at this level, you have to have chemistry. I firmly believe you have to have to have great chemistry.

"I know what he's all about."

In 392 career games in seven pro seasons, the 28-year-old Mallette has drawn 300-plus penalty minutes three times. In 2001-02, he had a career-high 349 in only 49 games with the Asheville Smoke. That translates to more than seven PIM per game.

Last year, he had two goals, three assists and 110 PIM in 37 games for Laredo.

For his career, Mallette has 12 goals and 42 assists.

Mallette is the second players the Generals have signed. Goaltender Eric Marvin, who broke into the pro ranks with the Generals at the end of the 2005-06 season, is the other player under contract.