Duluth, GA – The Atlanta Gladiators added a new face, in defenseman Cody Corbett. Corbett brings experience to the Glads defense having previously played in the AHL and last season spent time in Central Europe, with an Italian team.
"A huge signing for us, it gives us a defenseman who has AHL experience and some time in Europe, in a high-level league. We are getting a top D man that will be able to play in all situations and brings experienced leadership. He is a highly skilled defenseman that skates well, has size and a real heavy shot that will be a big part of our power play. A great kid that has connections with some of the guys we have here already, so he is going to be a great fit in our team plan. We were lucky to get him," said Coach Pyle.
Cody, a 25-year-old left-handed shooting defenseman is a Lakeland, Minnesota native and brings a very well-rounded resume to the Gladiators. Cody's career got off to a great start right out of high school. In 2011-12, while at Junior Hockey he helped the Edmonton Oil Kings win the Western Hockey League Championship and was ranked #149 by Future Considerations in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft. During the 2013-14 season, his stock continued to rise as he hit the trifecta. He was not only named to the Canadian Hockey League Memorial Cup All-Star Team but was a dual champion winning the CHL Memorial Cup and won the WHL Championship again. During the post-season that year he totaled 13 points with six goals and seven assists in 21 playoff games, as he helped Edmonton become champs for the second time in three seasons.
The following year in the 2014-15 season he went straight to hockey's highest level in the minors, playing his first professional season in the AHL with the Lake Erie Monsters. He stayed in the AHL the following season in 2015-16, this time with the San Antonio Rampage. Cody would finish that year however in Fort Wayne with the Komets, his first time in the ECHL. Between the two clubs, he played in a combined 57 games and recorded career highs in goals (8), assists (20) and points (28).
In the 2016-17 season, he returned to the AHL and the San Antonio Rampage, then finished the season back in the ECHL splitting time between the Colorado Eagles and the South Carolina Stingrays. He helped the Stingrays not only get to the playoffs but all the way to the Kelly Cup Finals, where South Carolina was swept by Colorado. He totaled nine points in 21 post-season games that year, with a goal and eight assists. In 2017-18 he stayed in the ECHL with the Idaho Steelheads for most of the season but also spent time in the EBEL the top league in Austria playing for Orli Znojmo, a team based in the Czech Republic.
Last season Cody played in Central Europe for Italy's Pustertal/Val Pusteria of the AlpsHL, a league made up of teams from Austria, Italy, and Slovenia. Cody went to the playoffs for the second time in his career, chipping in two goals and seven assists for nine points in 16 games. This season Corbett hopes to do the same for the Gladiators, who fell short of the playoffs on the final day of the regular season last year.
"I'm very excited to get things rolling in the fall. A great team is being put together that I'm excited to be a part of! I've heard lots of good things about the organization and the city. I'm really looking forward to being a Gladiator!" said the new defenseman Corbett.
The Atlanta Gladiators open the 2019-20 season home schedule on October 18th and 19th at the Infinite Energy Arena. Fans can purchase tickets by visiting website at www.atlantagladiators.com or by calling the front office at (770) 497-5100.
The Atlanta Gladiators are members of the ECHL, the nation’s premier "AA" hockey league and are the Affiliate of the Eastern Conference Champion Boston Bruins. All home games are played at the 9,119-seat Infinite Energy Arena, located just off I-85 on Sugarloaf Parkway in Duluth, Georgia. The Gladiators have established an unrivaled commitment to excellence, maintaining a distinctive reputation for providing fun, friendly, family, affordable entertainment and are consistently ranked as one of the best “Things to Do” in the Atlanta Metropolitan area and across the North Georgia region.