Asia's all-time talent Lee Chong-min enters the AHL just below the NHL for the first time in Korean ice hockey...Cleveland Monsters contract
Oct 23, 2025
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Lee Chong-min signed a contract with the AHL Cleveland Monsters on the 22nd (Korea time). The AHL is the lower stage of the North American Ice Hockey League (NHL), which is a dream stage, and it is the second division of professional ice hockey in Vukmi, where promising players gain experience and seek to advance to the NHL stage. Cleveland is a team under the NHL's Columbus Blue Jackets.
Lee Chong-min signed an AHL contract based on his strong performance in the ECHL, which is the third division of the North American professional ice hockey league last season. Lee Chong-min, who moved from HL Anyang to ECHL Bloomington Bisons last year, showed an outstanding performance in 62 regular league games with 22 goals and 33 assists, ranking second in points (goal + assist) within the team.
Lee Chong-min, who has been highly regarded as Korea's all-time ice hockey talent since his youth, entered the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL), a Canadian junior A-League, and sought to advance to the overseas stage by gaining experience, and in the 2018-2019 season, he became the BCHL champion at Prince George Spruce Kings.
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The Cleveland Monsters are a member of the AHL North Division and have 2-1-1 extended losses (five points) as of the 23rd, when they played four regular league games in the 2025-2026 season. Young players selected by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the NHL Entry Draft are the mainstay of the team, with a total of 15 forwards, 11 of which are NHL Draft picks.
Columbus, Cleveland's top team, is a member of the Metropolitan Division of the NHL's Eastern League and is a weak player who has failed to advance to the playoffs for five consecutive seasons, but has prospects such as Adam Fantastic and Kent Johnson.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
