Defenseman Jay Leach, a native of Altamont, was one of three players added by the New Jersey Devils, which had been done well in advance of this week's announcement (surprise, surprise).

Leach, who would have been a nice fit in Albany and was a player the Carolina Hurricanes considered signing, played 75games between Norfolk and Portland last season in the AHL, with 6 goals and 20 points. Most impressively, he finished a plus-21, going plus-12 in 55 games for a woeful Admirals team before being rescued by the Pirates, where he was 3-6-9 and plus-9 in 20 games.

The 6-foot-4, 215-pound Leach, who turns 29 Sept. 2, also played two games for the Tampa Bay Lightning, doubling his total of major-league action. He also played two games for Boston in 2005-06.

In some ways, Leach is the stereotypical Devil. He played four college seasons at Providence, otherwise known as Lou Lamorillo U., where the GM still rewards former players/coaches/announcers/etc. with employment. Leach's uncle, also named Jay, was an assistant coach for the Devs in 2001-02 and now works for the Washington Capitals.

Drafted in the fifth round, 115th overall, by Phoenix in 1998, Leach is ticketed for Lowell. He has had previous AHL stops in Springfield, Providence, Bridgeport, Norfolk and Portland, and Mississippi, Augusta, Long Beach and Trenton in the ECHL.

Leach's younger brother, Andrew, skated as a rookie for Trenton last season.