Kloucek is released; Melnyk returning?

Just when it appeared the roster might be stabilizing for the playoffs, the Richmond Renegades have made several more moves this week.

Defenseman Martin Kloucek was put on waivers Tuesday and forward Marlon Joseph was placed on league suspension yesterday, so the latter could go home and have surgery on his injured hand.

Joseph won't play any more this season. He played in seven games, with one assist and 13 penalty minutes. According to Allan B. Harvie, Jr., president and general manager of the team, Joseph suffered the injury in Rio Grande (Central Hockey League).

Taking one spot on the roster is forward Jason Price, who was claimed off waivers on Tuesday. Price, a 6-3 185-pounder, spent all of this season and half of last year with the Columbus Cottonmouths, who released him on Monday.

In 42 games, Price had five goals and 15 points for Columbus this season. He's scheduled to join the club in Jacksonville, where the Renegades open a two-game series with the Barracudas tomorrow.

Richmond is also taking a look at center Don Patrick, who was a member of the Wooster Warriors (Mid-Atlantic Hockey League), until the league folded recently. The 28-year-old had 16 goals and 69 points in 28 games for Wooster.

Meanwhile, forward Donald Melnyk was scheduled to arrive last night in time to board the bus for the trip to Jacksonville. Melnyk missed the past four games in order to be on hand for the birth of his first child in The Pas, Manitoba.

Wrobel joins Knoxville; plays here next week

Center J.J. Wrobel, who was waived by the Renegades last week, has signed a five-game tryout with the first-place Knoxville Ice Bears and will be back in Richmond next Friday to play against his former teammates.

Wrobel, who led the Renegades in scoring last season but had dropped off in productivity this year, knows it's going to be an emotional evening.

"Coming out of the other end of the tunnel," Wrobel said. "Being in the other dressing room. A whole new environment for me. You always want to play against a former team like that, under the circumstances."

Wrobel played against the Richmond RiverDogs (United Hockey League) after being traded to Quad City and helped eliminate the RiverDogs from the playoffs in 2005-06.

The 32-year-old had an offer from Rocky Mountain (CHL) but had played junior hockey with Knoxville coach Scott Hillman, so he decided to join him for the rest of the season.

"I took some time to think about it," Wrobel said. "It was a tough decision to leave my girlfriend and her 3-year-old behind. I had to talk it over with my family at home and here in Richmond. It wasn't a spur-of-the-moment thing. If I was going to do it, I wanted to do it with the 100 percent backing of everyone.

"Five years [in Richmond], I couldn't ask for anything better from the city and the fans. Both the city and the fans made it home for me. On behalf of myself and my parents, I really want to say thank you very much for all the support I got over the years." --John Packett