Flint defenseman Garza signs NAHL tender

The Flint Jr. Generals of the North American 3 Hockey League (NA3HL) are pleased to announce that defenseman Phil Garza has signed an NAHL tender with the Odessa Jackalopes.  Odessa competes in the South Division of the NAHL.

The 2012-13 season marked Garza’s second in the NA3HL and first with Flint.  Garza, a Bartlett, Illinois native, spent the 2011-12 season with the NA3HL’s Chicago Hitmen.

Garza, 18, played in 43 of Flint’s 48 regular season games this past season.  He recorded 19 points (4 goals, 15 assists) and was a +2.  Garza (5’10/185) also played in five playoff games as Flint made the Silver Cup Tournament.

Garza’s 19 points were tied for second on the Flint roster in scoring for defensemen.

Following the season, Garza was selected to participate in the NA3HL’s Top Prospects Tournament held in May in Frisco, Texas.  Garza played on Team Michigan and had one assist in four games.  The Odessa Jackalopes staff was at the event and signed Garza to the tender following the event.

Last season in 34 games with the Hitmen, Garza had seven points (all assists).

Garza is the second player from the Flint Jr. Generals to sign a tender with an NAHL team this season, joining teammates Jacob Howie who signed with the Corpus Christi IceRays.

See the complete NA3HL to NAHL tender list here

A tender is a contract, of sorts, a player signs announcing his intentions to play for that particular NAHL team and that NAHL team only. Once a player signs a tender with an NAHL team, his playing rights belong to that team within the NAHL and he may not be recruited by any other NAHL team. Each team is granted ten (10) tenders, which includes one tender exclusively used on players from the NA3HL - plus or minus any trades - which become active on Nov. 1. Tendered players are not eligible for the NAHL draft, which will be held on June 4, 2013.