Forward Baer signs after dominant SPHL campaign

Coralville, Iowa – The Iowa Heartlanders, proud ECHL affiliate of the Minnesota Wild and Iowa Wild, announced Tuesday forward Alec Baer (pronoun­­ced: BAIR) has come to terms with the team on an ECHL contract for the 2022-23 season. Baer won the SPHL’s President’s Cup and Most Valuable Player Award with Peoria last season and led the SPHL with 54 assists and 80 points. He is a fifth-year pro and has played 57 career ECHL games.The Heartlanders 2022-23 schedule is now available at iowaheartlanders.com/schedule. The team opens their second season in the ECHL on October 21 at 7:05 p.m. vs. Idaho. Rose Club season ticket memberships, partial plans and group ticket options are available for the upcoming season by calling 319-569-GOAL and visiting iowaheartlanders.com/tickets.  2022-23 RosterForwards (9): Zach White, Yuki Miura, Jake Smith, Cole Stallard, Josh Koepplinger, Alec Broetzman, C.J. Yakimowicz, Nick Campoli, Alec BaerDefensemen (6): Riese Zmolek, Ryan Wheeler, Jake Stevens, Connor Russell, T.J. Fergus, Justin WellsGoaltenders (1): Corbin KaczperskiAlec Baer: “Being a Minnesota guy [St. Louis Park, MN native], it’s cool to be a part of the Wild affiliation. Last season I had so many great teammates and coaches that were a part of an amazing season and winning a championship with Peoria was such a blessing. I’m looking forward to challenging myself with being back at the ECHL level. I’m so excited to get the season rolling and meeting the guys on the team.”Head Coach and General Manager Derek Damon: “Alec has proven himself at the SPHL level the last few seasons and we recognize this is a big year upcoming for him to show he can take what he’s learned and translate it back to our league. He’s still a young player at 24 years old and has a lot of professional experience which is a welcome addition to our team. We expect him to arrive in October and compete with the kind of fast and tenacious effort we expect out of our forward group.”Baer’s tremendous 2021-22 season marked his third straight campaign in the SPHL (Peoria, Birmingham, Evansville from 2019-22). In that time, he was teammates with Heartlanders Jake Smith and Cole Stallard. The St. Louis Park, MN native has skated for Rapid City, Maine and Newfoundland in the ECHL, accumulating 11 goals and 20 pts.The 5-foot-11, 181-lb., right-handed shot played five full WHL campaigns from 2013-18 with Vancouver, Lethbridge and Kootenay.