WORCESTER RAILERS HC ANNOUNCE FIVE SIGNINGS FOR 2026-27 SEASON

Railers officially have three forwards, three defensemen signed for the upcoming season.

WORCESTER, Mass. – The Worcester Railers Hockey Club (@RailersHC), proud ECHL (@ECHL) affiliate of the St. Louis Blues (@StLouisBlues), and Head Coach & General Manager Nick Tuzzolino, announced today that the club has re-signed forwards Lincoln Hatten and Declan McDonnell, along with defensemen Michael Suda, Connor Federkow, and Gabe Blanchard to ECHL contracts for the 2026-27 season.

Hatten, 26, re-signs with Worcester for his third professional season. The Railers originally signed Hatten on October 22nd, 2024 from the Evansville Thunderbolts of the Southern Professional Hockey League.

During the 2025-26 season with the Railers, Hatten set a career-high in games played at 68, topping the 2024-25 season by two games. The Hattiesburg, MS native set career-highs in goals (13) and points (25) while he tallied 12 assists for Worcester. Hatten led the Railers in penalty minutes with 129. The 6'3", 192lb forward currently sits fourth all-time in Railers history in penalty minutes with 223, 13 behind Ross Olsson (2018-24) at 236. Hatten was named the Worcester Railers Player of the Month for Oct/Nov 2025, and was the recipient of the team's Tough Guy Award for the 2025-26 season, as voted on by the Worcester Railers Booster Club.

Suda, 24, re-signs with Worcester for his first full season with the team. The Railers first acquired Suda in a trade with the Savannah Ghost Pirates on November 6th, 2025.

Since he joined the Railers in November, the Buffalo, NY native finished first among Railers defensemen, fifth among all Railers skaters, and 19th amongst all ECHL defensemen in points with 39 (5G, 34A). The 6'1", 187lb defenseman had two power-play goals on the season, and was tied with Railers captain Anthony Repaci for the team lead in power-play assists with 12. Suda was named the Worcester Railers Rookie of the Year for the 2025-26 season, as voted on by the Worcester Railers Booster Club.

McDonnell, 24, re-signs with the Railers for his first full professional season. The Railers originally signed McDonnell on March 10th, 2026 following the conclusion of his lone season of NCAA Division I hockey at Niagara University.

In 11 games with Worcester last season, the Buffalo, NY native scored five points (1G, 4A) for the Railers. The 5'10", 190lb forward recorded the first multi-point game of his career on April 2nd, 2026 when he tallied two assists in a 5-3 victory for Worcester at the DCU Center over the Reading Royals. Prior to his collegiate career, the Buffalo, NY native made appearances in the Ontario Hockey League and the United States Hockey League. Over his junior career, McDonnell amassed 196 games and 148 points (63G, 85A) to go with 161 penalty minutes in four seasons played from 2018-2023. McDonnell was drafted 217th overall by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 7th round of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft. During the 2020-21 season, McDonnell played 16 games with the Syracuse Crunch of the American Hockey League while the OHL had cancelled its season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Federkow, 22, re-signs with the Railers for his first full season with the team. The Railers first signed Federkow on December 29th, 2025 from the Evansville Thunderbolts of the SPHL.

In 20 games with the Railers last season, the St. Catherines, ON native recorded eight penalty minutes to go with a +1 rating. Prior to playing professional hockey, the 5'10", 187 lb defenseman spent three seasons in the Ontario Hockey league between the London Knights and the Niagara IceDogs. In 153 OHL games, Federkow had 18 points (4G, 14A) to go with 225 penalty minutes.

Blanchard, 25, re-signs with the Railers for his first full season with the team. The Railers first acquired Blanchard in a trade with the Greensboro Gargoyles on December 1st, 2025.

In 37 games with the Railers last season, the Buffalo, NY native totaled three points (1G, 2A) to go with nine penalty minutes and a -7 rating. Prior to professional hockey, The 6'1", 201 lb defenseman had a four year collegiate career between Sacred Heart University and UMass-Lowell. In 103 collegiate games, he had 12 points (2G, 10A) along with 85 penalty minutes and a -1 rating.

The Railers have announced six players officially signed for the 2026-27 season, as Hatten, Suda, McDonnell, Federkow, and Blanchard join Anthony Repaci on this season's roster. More announcements are expected over the coming weeks. 

Worcester Regional Airport is the official airport of the Worcester Railers HC and presenting partner of all Railers transactions.

The 508 Club is now on sale for the 2026-27 season! Get access to games, exclusive events and additional benefits by calling the Railers front office at 508-365-1750 or by visiting RailersHC.com.

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