Charlotte Checkers add four players, including brother of Adam Fantilli

On Friday, June 12, the Charlotte Checkers, the AHL affiliate of the Florida Panthers, announced four signings, including Mitch Vande Sompel, Will Bitten, Vinnie Purpura, and Luca Fantilli. Of course, the Fantilli name should be familiar to hockey fans, since Luca is the younger brother of Columbus Blue Jackets star Adam Fantilli.

Here’s a look at each player’s career up to their recent signing with the Checkers.

Luca Fantilli (D)

As an undrafted left-handed defenseman, Luca played two seasons with the Chicago Steel in the USHL, serving as their team captain for the 2021-22 campaign. After that, he committed four years to the University of Michigan, becoming an alternate captain last year.

Fantilli tallied seven goals and 36 points in 112 USHL games, winning the Clark Cup in 2021. With the Wolverines, he collected eight goals and 38 points in 147 NCAA games and won two B1G championships, earning B1G All-Tournament honors last season.

While his brother Adam would go on to be the third overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft by the Blue Jackets, the brothers did team up with the Steel from 2020 to 2022 and for one season in Michigan in 2022-23.

Vinnie Purpura (G)

Considering that the Panthers don’t have any goalies signed to their NHL roster, at least the organization is adding depth to their minor league teams. As another undrafted signee, Purpura is about to play his first game in the AHL. At 27, he’s played everywhere from the USHL to the NCAA to the ECHL, but has yet to start a game in the minors.

Last year in the ECHL, split between the Reading Royals and Savannah Ghost Pirates, Purpura skated in 39 games, going 22-17-0, surrendering 100 goals, while compiling a 1.89 GAA and .938 SV%. After 83 games in the league, Purpura's totals include a 50-27-9 record with a 2.67 GAA and .914 SV% and three shutouts.

Surprisingly, his NCAA numbers with Boston University and Long Island University were not as stellar. In 53 college games, he went 12-34-1, earning a sub-par 3.38 GAA and .894 SV%.

Heading into the 2026-27 season, Purpura will share the crease with Cooper Black.

William Bitten (RW/C)

Initially drafted by the Montreal Canadiens in the third round (70th overall), Bitten has skated in only four games, making his debut with the St. Louis Blues during the 2022-23 season. After spending most of his time in the AHL from 2018 to 2024, he has played in the KHL for the past two seasons, most recently with HK Sochi, scoring 10 goals and 21 points in 59 games.

Bitten will return to North America and the AHL, where he has 180 career points, 80 goals, and 100 assists in 346 career games. In addition to winning a gold medal at the Hlinka Gretzky Tournament in 2016, he is an OHL champion, winning with the Hamilton Bulldogs in 2018. However, throughout his time in the OHL, AHL, and KHL, Bitten is a minus player, combining for a minus- 79.

Mitchell Vande Sompel (D)

Vande Sompel is no stranger to the Checkers, since he’s been with the club since the 2023-24 season. Last season, he collected four goals and 11 points in 36 games, his first full campaign with the club. After a mid-season trade in 2023-24, in which he played 16 games with Charlotte, he dressed for only 13 games in 2024-25.

A ten-year AHL veteran, Vande Sompel had 128 points in 347 games, thanks to 33 goals and 95 assists. Over four seasons in the OHL, where he won a Memorial Cup with the Oshawa Generals in 2015, he collected 174 points in 218 games, with 47 goals and 126 assists. In addition to winning Canada’s top junior championship that year, he also won the OHL championship and a gold medal at the Hlinka Gretzky Tournament.

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