Gulls sign two college prospects to amateur tryout agreements

The San Diego Gulls announced Monday that they have signed two former college prospects to amateur tryout (ATO) agreements in center Mitch Hults and forward Austin Ortega.

A former Lake Superior State product, Hults signed a two-year entry-level contract with the Anaheim Ducks on Monday, the Gulls’ primary affiliate in the National Hockey League, after two impressive seasons with the Lakers.

During his sophomore season, Hults led the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) with 23 assists and ranked third in points with 34 en route to being named to the All-WCHA Second Team in 2016-17. He also led the Lakers in scoring, assists, points per game (0.94), assists per game (0.64), faceoff wins (366) and faceoff win percentage (54.5).

Hults, 22, has recorded 20-34=54 points with 98 penalty minutes (PIM) in 76 career games with Lake Superior State.

Similar to Hults, Ortega also impressed among the college ranks to earn a bid with the Gulls.

An Escondido, Calif. native, Ortega was named to the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) All-Conference First Team this season after picking up career highs in assists (27) and points (20) in 38 game appearances with the University of Nebraska-Omaha. His 47 points led the NCHC, and he ranked tied for third in goals.

Over the course of his 147-game career with the Mavericks, Ortega set an NCAA record with 23 game-winning goals. He finished his Maverick tenure with 20-69=139 points, 66 PIM and a +4 rating.

If both Hults and Ortega are able to carry their collegiate momentum into the American Hockey League, the two could see action in any of the Gulls’ 11 remaining regular season games.