ORLANDO, Fla. – The Orlando Solar Bears, ECHL affiliate of the NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning, announced today the signings of forward Alton McDermott to an ECHL Standard Player Contract (SPC) and agreed to an Amateur Tryout Contract (ATO) with forward Luciano Wilson. Additionally, the Solar Bears have traded defenseman Ryan Dickinson to the Tahoe Knight Monsters to complete the trade that allowed the Solar Bears to acquire defenseman Carter Allen from the Iowa Heartlanders on November 13, 2025.
McDermott, 24, joins the Solar Bears following his collegiate career at Canisius University, where he emerged as a reliable two‑way presence and contributor in the Golden Griffins lineup. The fifth-year Graduate Student totaled 102 NCAA games for Canisius, scoring 43 points (23g-20a) from 2021-2026.
Prior to his collegiate career, the Oakville, ON, CAN native played four seasons of junior hockey in the Ontario Junior Hockey League (OJHL) for his hometown Oakville Blades and the Milton Icehawks from 2018-2021, scoring 81 points (46g-35a) in 103 games.
McDermott is the grandson of Paul Henderson, who played over 700 games in the National Hockey League for Detroit, Toronto, and Atlanta from 1962-1980, and scored the famous clinching goal for Team Canada in the 1972 Summit Series over the Soviet Union.
Wilson, 24, played his college hockey at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) this season after spending three years at Minnesota State University-Mankato, helping the Mavericks secure two Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) Championships in 2023 and again in 2025. In total, the Duncan, BC, CAN native tallied 61 points (23g-38a) in 123 NCAA games from 2022-2026. His 22 points this season led the RPI Engineers Hockey Team in scoring.
Prior to his collegiate career, Wilson played five seasons of junior hockey in the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL), leading the Penticton Vees in regular season and playoff scoring on the way to the Fred Page Cup as league champions in 2022. In 182 career BCHL games, Wilson totaled 179 points (72g-107a) and 105 penalty minutes.
Dickinson, 26, appeared in 37 games this season, scoring two points (2a) and 37 penalty minutes. In 118 ECHL games over three seasons with Worcester, Kalamazoo, and Orlando, the Brighton, MI native has 15 points (2g-13a) and 115 penalty minutes.
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