April 5, 2014
Notre Dame, Ind. – Two more members of Notre Dame hockey’s senior class have begun their professional careers as goaltender Steven Summerhays (Anchorage, Alaska) signed with the Ft. Wayne Komets and center David Gerths (Ankeny, Iowa) inked a deal with the South Carolina Stingrays.
Summerhays was on the bench as a back up goaltender in Friday night’s 4-1 win over Toledo while Gerths could see his first action on Saturday against the Florida Everblades. Both players are signed for the remainder of the 2013-14 season.
They join Bryan Rust (Sr., Novi, Mich.), T.J. Tynan (Sr., Orland Park, Ill.) and Stephen Johns (Sr., Wampum, Pa.) who signed entry-level contracts with Pittsburgh, Columbus and Chicago in the National Hockey League over the past week.
The 23-year old Summerhays was among the top goaltenders in Hockey East and the nation this season as he turned in a record of 21-14-2 overall, while playing over 2,200 minutes with a goals-against average of 2.04 and a save percentage of .923 to go with seven shutouts on the year.
He led Hockey East in wins (21), minutes played (2,234) and shutouts (7) while his goals-against (2.04) was second and his save-percentage mark was sixth. Nationally, he was fourth in minutes played, tied for fifth in wins, seventh in save percentage and led the nation with seven shutouts.
David Gerths continues his hockey career as a member of the ECHL’s South Carolina Stingrays.
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One of 18 candidates for the first Mike Richter Goaltender of the Year Award this season, he was selected as the Hockey East Defensive Player of the Week three times during the year and was the league’s Stop-It Goaltender of the Month for February.
During February, he set a new Notre Dame shutout streak by going 231:50 without giving up a goal from Feb. 14 until March 1, a streak that included three consecutive shutouts.
He finished his Irish career ranked second on the all-time win list with 57 wins while he is second in goals-against average (2.19) and third in save percentage (.914). His 13 shutouts are the most in Notre Dame history.
Ft. Wayne is third in the ECHL North Division with a 33-23-7-5 record, good for 78 points. The Komets hold the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference and have a four-point lead on Florida with four home games left on the regular-season schedule
Gerths, 23, is a tough, two-way center who played a strong defensive game during his Notre Dame career. As a senior, he played in 36 games, scoring a goal with five assists for six points. He was +6 for the year and had 28 penalty minutes.
In four seasons with the Irish, Gerths played in 155 games, scoring 18 goals with 13 assists for 31 points. The 6-0, 210-pound center will join three former teammates in Charleston, S.C., as he joins Patrick Gaul `12, Joe Lavin `11 and Nick Larson `13 on the Stingrays roster.
South Carolina is currently in first place in the ECHL’s South Division with a record of 40-22-2-4, for 86 points, two points ahead of Orlando in the battle for the top spot. They have clinched a playoff spot and have four regular season games left on the schedule with three on the road and one at home.