Vela, Helewka putting up points in AHL

Burnaby’s Marcus Vela has made a quick jump from collegiate hockey to the pro ranks.

The Burnaby Minor Hockey product inked a deal last week with the San Jose Barracuda of the American Hockey League, the top farm team of the San Jose Sharks.

A seventh round pick of the Sharks in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft, Vela’s signing gives the Sharks a chance to evaluate the former University of New Hampshire captain without using up one of their 50 allotted cards.

The 24-year-old Vela made his AHL debut on March 27 in San Diego. Two nights later in San Jose, the winger recorded his first pro point, an assist, on Antti Suomela’s goal in the final minute of a 5-0 win over the Ontario Reign.

In the team’s next game, the six-foot-two forward recorded two shots on net and picked up his second assist, this time three minutes into the second period on Matt Fonteyne’s tally that gave the Barracuda a 1-0 lead over the Pacific Division-leading Bakersfield Condors. San Jose, which sits second in the division with a 35-20-3-4 record, won the game 4-2.

Over a four-year-long career in New Hampshire, Vela tallied 58 points, including 24 goals over 135 games, and was the team’s captain during the past season. Prior to that, he played two seasons with the B.C. Hockey League’s Langley Rivermen.

In the AHL's Central Division, the Milwaukee Admirals continue to keep their playoff drive alive, thanks to the contributions of Burnaby’s Adam Helewka.

Fresh off of signing a one-year contract with the Nashville Predators just five weeks ago, the Burnaby Winter Club product has put up the points as a member of their AHL farm team.

A fourth-round draft pick of the San Jose Sharks in 2015, Helewka began the season with Arizona’s top farm team in Tucson, before getting dealt to Nashville in February. He immediately paid dividends upon reporting to their AHL farm team in Milwaukee, racking up seven points in his first seven games in Wisconsin.

During the recent three-game win streak, Helewka collected an assist in each game. The third-year AHL vet has already set a new personal mark with 18 goals and 45 points over 61 games.

Nashville traded for Helewka in early February in a swap that also brought Laurent Dauphin from Arizona, for prospect Emil Pettersson -- the older brother of Vancouver Canucks' star rookie Elias Pettersson.

It was the second time the former Spokane Chief forward had been dealt over the past 12 months, as the Arizona Coyotes acquired his rights last summer from the Sharks in a one-for-one swap.

He inked a two-way deal for the 2019-20 season with Nashville, which would pay him $700,000 if called up to the NHL.