Chris Hickey in 2008-09?

The 12 USHL teams released their initial protected lists for tomorrow's USHL entry draft.

Initial protected lists consist of any returning veteran players that a team wishes to protect for next season, as well as any players from their affiliate lists that they wish to add. The numbers of players on each team's list will determine how many they will select in the entry draft.

As DPlaya noted, Chris Hickey is not on Tri-Cities' list. Does this mean Hickey will be in Madison this fall? (In the same post, DPlaya comments on other notable exclusions/inclusions.)