Slovak defenseman Branislav Mezei, 44, has signed a one-year contract extension with his hometown club, HK Nitra, to play what will be his 26th season of professional hockey, the Slovak Extraliga club announced on Saturday.

“Throughout (last) season, I had in my mind that it wasn’t the last season,” said Mezei. “So it wasn’t a decision that was made at the end, but throughout the season, depending on how I felt and how much fun I had with my teammates. I was more or less determined during the season to continue.

“I haven’t even had the thought of ending my career yet, but of course, it also depends on the club whether they are still interested in bringing me back,” he continued. “Management said yes, so that also made the decision easier for me.”

Nitra, a city of about 80,000 people located approximately 100 km northeast of Bratislava, is where Mezei was born and raised until age 16, when he went overseas to play junior hockey for the OHL’s Belleville Bulls, who no longer exist.

His junior career included an OHL championship and an appearance in the 1999 Memorial Cup, which also included Roberto Luongo, Francois Beauchemin, Brad Stuart, Nick Boynton, Brian Campbell and teammate Jonathan Cheecho. He also played in that year’s World Junior Championship, where Slovakia won its first-ever IIHF medal – a bronze. His teammates included Ladislav Nagy and Marián Gáborik. Other players in the tournament included Luongo, Brian Gionta, Simon Gagné, Nikolai Antropov and Daniel and Henrik Sedin.

Brett Ritchie Moves From Slovakia To Germany – Nitra Club President Blames Slovak RefsCanadian right winger Brett Ritchie, 31, has been released from his contract with Slovak Extraliga club HK Nitra and has signed to play the remainder of the current season with the Schwenninger Wild Wings, the German DEL club announced on Wednesday.

Mezei was chosen in the first round, 10th overall, by the New York Islanders in the 1999 NHL Entry Draft. The Islanders had acquired the pick from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for Trevor Linden.

Between 2000 and 2008, Mezei played 527 NHL games for the Islanders and Florida Panthers, recording 24 points and 311 penalty minutes.

Mezei split the 2004-05 lockout season between Oceláři Třinec in the Czech Extraliga and Dukla Trenčín in Slovakia, where his teammates included Radek Bonk, Pavol Demitra, Marián Hossa and Gáborik. Between 2008 and 2014, he played for eight different clubs in the KHL, Czechia and Finland before returning to Nitra in October 2014. He’s remained there ever since.

Highlights since his return to Nitra over a decade ago include national titles in 2016 and 2024. Along the way he mentored young defenseman Šimon Nemec, who now plays for the New Jersey Devils.

“I’m home, I’m playing for my hometown, that’s always extra motivation,” said Mezei. “My son also plays hockey, so I’m glad that I can still be there and I can be a role model for him, so it all came together somehow.”

Photo © Lou Capozzola-Imagn Images: Branislav Mezei playing for the Florida Panthers in the 2005-06 season. 

8th-seeded Nitra improbably wins Slovak titleRather improbably, HK Nitra is the champion of the Slovak Extraliga. After finishing eighth out of 12 teams during the regular season, Nitra barely survived a play-in series against Dukla Trenčín, but then eliminated, in succession first-seeded HK Poprad in the quarterfinals, second-seeded Dukla Michalovce in the semifinals, and then swept third-seeded HK Spišská Nová Ves in the finals.

Czech defenseman Michal Kempný, 34, has signed a one-year contract with Brynäs IF, the Gävle-based SHL club announced on Friday.

“It’s an honor to be part of such a fantastic organization with a proud tradition and passionate fanbase,” said Kempný. “I look forward to meeting everyone in the organization and becoming part of the Brynäs family. I can’t wait to get started.”

“Michal is a player who has won at several different levels in his career,” said Brynäs sports director Johan Alcén. “He has incredible experience and is a guy who is driven by competition and wants to win. We’ve received many great references for Michal and it feels really good and exciting that Michal will play for us.”

Originally from Hodonín in southeastern Czechia, Kempný played junior hockey just across the border in Skalica, Slovakia and then played in the Czech Extraliga for Kometa Brno and Slavia Prague and for one season in the KHL for Avangard Omsk.

Never drafted by an NHL team, Kempný signed as a free agent with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2016 at age 26. From 2016 to 2022, he played 247 NHL regular-season games for the Hawks and Washington Capitals, recording 63 points and 146 penalty minutes. He also recorded six points in 30 playoff games and was a member of Washington’s 2018 Stanley Cup championship team.

Kempný signed as a free agent with the Seattle Kraken in 2022 but was assigned to the AHL and, after two games, his contract was terminated by mutual agreement. He then signed with Sparta Prague on Oct. 25, 2022, where he spent the following three seasons.

There Will Be A New Czech Champion - Třinec's 5-Year Reign Ended By Sparta After five long years, Oceláři Třinec’s reign as Extraliga champion is over, following the team’s quarterfinal defeat at the hands of Sparta Prague before a sellout crowd of 17,220 at O2 Arena on Monday.

Internationally, Kempný has represented Czechia at five IIHF World Championships, winning a gold medal on home ice in 2024, and at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.

Kempný joins a Brynäs team that is coming off a season in which it shattered all expectations. Just after being promoted from the HockeyAllsvenskan, Brynäs finished first overall in the regular season and made it to the SHL finals, where it lost to Lulea in six games.

In addition to Kempný, the club’s roster includes ex-NHLers Jakob Silfverberg, Johan Larsson, Robert Hägg, Oskar Lindblom, Christian Djoos, Axel Jonsson-Fjällby, Mattias Norlinder and goaltender Erik Källgren.

Last year’s team included defensemen Charles-Édouard D’Astous and Victor Söderström – however, D’Astous has signed with the Tampa Bay Lightning and Söderström, whose rights have been traded twice in the past few months, has signed with the Boston Bruins.

Photo © Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Robert Hägg Returns To Sweden Swedish defenseman Robert Hägg, 30, has signed a one-year contract with Brynäs IF, the Gävle-based SHL club announced on Wednesday. Hägg is returning to Sweden after spending the past 11 seasons in North America, split between the NHL and AHL in six different organizations.

Czech goaltender Aleš Stezka, 28, has signed a three-year contract with Kometa Brno, the Czech Extraliga club announced on Wednesday.

Stezka had played the last two seasons in North America in the Seattle Kraken organization.

“After the end of the season, my agents and family started discussing what to do next,” said Stezka. “Mr. Zábranský approached me and asked if I would be interested in signing a contract with Kometa. The negotiations were very pleasant, positive, and I have to say that the agreement was great, fast, and fair. I liked the vision for the future. We had talked about it some time ago, but I decided to stay overseas. I am very happy that Mr. Zábranský contacted me again and that I can become part of a club with a great tradition and great fans.”

Originally from Plzeň in Western Bohemia, Stezka played youth hockey in Tremosna and Liberec before playing two years of junior hockey in the USHL with the Sioux Falls Stampede and Chicago Steel. He was drafted by the Minnesota Wild in the fourth round of the 2015 NHL Entry Draft.

After playing six pro seasons back home in Czechia, which included 112 Extraliga games for Bílí Tygři Liberec, Piráti Chomutov and HC Vítkovice.

Former NHL Goalie Chris Driedger Signs In KHL Canadian goaltender Chris Driedger, 31, has signed a one-year contract with Traktor Chelyabinsk, the KHL club announced on Tuesday.

Over the past two seasons, he played one NHL game for the Kraken on Feb. 24, stopping 20 of 23 shots in a 4-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning. He spent the rest of the time playing in the AHL for the Coachella Valley Firebirds.

He’s coming to a Kometa team that is the reigning Extraliga champion, and has under contract for 2025-26 former teammate Peter Mueller and also 25-year-old defenseman Filip Král, who played two games for the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2023-24 and whose NHL rights are currently retained by the Pittsburgh Penguins.

“It’s clear to me that I’m going to a club that has the highest ambitions, is followed by the media and the pressure is huge from all sides,” said Stezka. “But I’m ready for it. I’ll try to do my best for Kometa. We want to play good hockey, to get results and entertain our fans.”

Photo © Bob Frid-Imagn Images

Kometa Brno Returns To Top Of Czech Extraliga Kometa Brno is once again the champion of the Czech Extraliga, defeating Dynamo Pardubice 3-0 in the seventh and decisive game of the finals on Tuesday night in Pardubice. It was the second series in a row that the team won a seventh game on the road.

Canadian goaltender Chris Driedger, 31, has signed a one-year contract with Traktor Chelyabinsk, the KHL club announced on Tuesday.

For Driedger, who spent the 2024-25 season in the Florida Panthers and Winnipeg Jets organizations but spent the entire season in the AHL, this will be his first time playing for a team outside North America.

“With the signing of Chris Driedger, we have filled both goalie positions for next season,” said Traktor GM Alexei Volkov, himself a former NHL goaltender. Driedger is slated to share the crease with Sergei Mylnikov Jr., the son of a former NHL and Soviet national team goalie.

Volkov said that Driedger “is in the prime of his goalie career. He’s a large goalie who played decently in the NHL and became a World Championship medalist. Now Chris needs a new challenge, which he will get at Traktor. I’m confident that our organization and coaching staff will help him with a quick adaptation and reach the top level of the KHL.”

Driedger, who hails from Winnipeg, played junior hockey for the WHL’s Tri-City Americans and Calgary Hitmen, was chosen in the third round, 76th overall, by the Ottawa Senators in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft.

Olympic Men’s Hockey Teams Name First Six Players All 12 teams that will compete in the men’s tournament of the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy have now announced their rosters.

Between 2014 and 2024, Driedger played 67 NHL regular-season games for the Senators, Panthers and Seattle Kraken, compiling a record of 31-24-5 with a goals-against average of 2.45, a save percentage of .917 and five shutouts. He also played three playoff games for Florida in 2021.

Internationally, Driedger played in six of Canada’s 10 games at the 2022 IIHF World Championship in Finland, backstopping the team to a silver medal.

Driedger, whose NHL rights are for now retained by Winnipeg, joins a Traktor team that includes former NHLers Vladimir Zahkarov and Jordan Gross, as well as prospects Arseni Koromyslov (St. Louis Blues), Semyon Der-Arguchintsev (Toronto Maple Leafs), Matvei Guskov (Minnesota Wild) and Vasili Glotov (Buffalo Sabres).

Photo © Sergei Belski-Imagn Images: Chris Driedger playing for the Seattle Kraken in the 2023-24 season. 

Ex-NHL D-Man Jordan Gross Changes KHL TeamsAmerican defenseman Jordan Gross, 30, has signed a one-year contract with Traktor Chelyabinsk, the KHL club announced on Friday. Gross played his first season in Europe last season in the KHL with Dinamo Minsk, where he recorded 42 points in 77 regular-season and playoff games.

A pair of forwards who have been members of the Zurich Lions back-to-back championships in Switzerland and the team’s Champions Hockey League title this past season have signed contracts with NHL clubs this weekend.

On Saturday, it was 20-year-old Austrian Vinzenz Rohrer, the Montreal Canadiens’ third-round pick in 2022, who signed a three-year entry-level deal with the club. While that deal was fully expected, the following day’s announcement – that 29-year-old Finn Juho Lammikko had signed a one-year contract with the New Jersey Devils – apparently caught Zurich sports director Sven Leuenberger off guard.

“This departure was not planned – as a sports director, you are somewhat powerless in this agreement,” said Leuenberger. “But Juho has earned the chance to return to the NHL with his good play with us, and I understand that he wants to take it. I wish him the best of luck.”

Lammikko had signed a three-year contract extension with Zurich last December, but European contracts typically include escape clauses if the player receives an NHL offer.

Swiss Champs Sign Two Ex-NHLers To Multi-Year Contract ExtensionsThe ZSC Lions have signed two forwards with NHL experience to contract extensions, the Zurich-based National League club announced on Friday. They are 28-year-old Finnish center Juho Lammikko, who has signed for three extra years and 30-year-old Swedish right winger Jesper Frödén, who has added two.

Lammikko’s departure frees up an import spot on Zurich’s roster, and Leuenberger indicated that the club will try to find a replacement. Rohrer, who has played in Switzerland since he was 12, is considered a domestic player in Switzerland.

While it’s his first NHL contract, this will not be Rohrer’s first experience playing on North America, as he played two seasons with the OHL’s Ottawa 67’s. Over the past two seasons back in Switzerland, he has recorded 55 points in 132 National League regular-season and playoff games. He has also represented Switzerland in each of the last two IIHF World Championships.

This will be Lammikko’s third tour of duty in North America. Originally a third-round pick of the Florida Panthers in 2014, the 6-foot-3, 203-pound Lammikko has 26 points in 159 NHL regular-season games with Florida and the Vancouver Canucks, mostly in the role of a fourth-line winger. Over the past three seasons, he has 131 points in 176 National League regular-season and playoff games. He has represented Finland in four World Championships, winning two gold medals.

Photo © Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports: Juho Lammikko playing for the Vancouver Canucks in the 2021-22 season.

Vinzenz Rohrer on Austrian team, his summer & coming seasonAustrian forward Vinzenz Rohrer was the Montreal Canadiens’ third-round pick in 2022 and is just coming off his first professional season for the ZSC Lions in Switzerland’s National League. After a solid rookie campaign as part of a national championship team, the 19-year-old was selected to play in his first IIHF World Championship in May for an Austrian team that surprised many people and came agonizingly close to reaching the quarterfinals.

American right winger Karson Kuhlman, 29, has signed a one-year contract with Rögle BK, the SHL club announced on Sunday. The signing comes just three days after Rögle announced the signing of former NHL defenseman Mark Friedman.

“Karson brings a lot of experience, including a season in Europe,” said Rögle sports director Hampus Sjöström. “He is a versatile player who can contribute in all forms of play. He is committed and good at finding pucks around the net.”

A graduate of the University of Minnesota-Duluth, where he captained the team to a national championship in his senior year, Kuhlman was never drafted but signed as a free agent with the Boston Bruins in the spring of 2018.

He then spent the next six seasons shuttling between the NHL and AHL for the Bruins, Seattle Kraken, Winnipeg Jets and New York Islanders. He recorded 30 points in 147 NHL games and four points in 17 playoff games.

Last season, Kuhlman played for Lukko in the Finnish Liiga, where he recorded 49 points in 71 regular-season and playoff games and was named Liiga’s player of the month in December.

Rögle has been one of the SHL’s more successful teams over the past five seasons but is coming off a year where it finished seventh in the regular season and was eliminated in the play-in round. In addition to Kuhlman and Friedman, the team also has under contract for 2025-26 former NHLer Fredrik Olofsson.

© James Carey Lauder-Imagn Images

Former NHL D-Man Mark Friedman Signs Two-Year Deal In Sweden Canadian defenseman Mark Friedman, 29, has signed a two-year contract to play for Rögle BK, the SHL club announced on Thursday.

Czech winger Jakub Vrána, 29, has spent the last decade in North America, mostly in the NHL, but rumors are circulating both in Sweden and in Czechia that Sweden will be the next stop for the free agent.

Prior to heading overseas in 2015, Vrána played for Linköping HC from age 15 to 19, starting with the club’s U-16 team and progressing to the SHL, where he recorded 34 points in 98 games as a teenager.

Swedish website HockeyNews.se claims to have directly asked Linköping HC GM Peter Jakobsson about Vrána.

“There is contact. We’ve had a good relationship over the years,” said Jakobsson.

But while admitting interest, the GM stopped short of saying that a deal is imminent.

“We know what qualities he possesses, but right now it is an uncertain situation,” said Jakobsson.

While he played in Linköping, Vrána was chosen 14th overall in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft by the Washington Capitals. He established himself as a regular NHLer, recording 52 points in 69 games for Washington in 2019-20, and he regularly represented Czechia at the IIHF World Championships.

However, his career eventually became marred by injuries, declining play and a spell in the NHL’s Player Assistance Program. Over the last four seasons, Vrána has only played in 110 NHL games, recording 49 points. He was also unable to earn a spot on the Czech national team roster last spring, getting cut prior to the 2024 Worlds in Prague.

Overall, Vrána has 223 points in 406 NHL regular season games with the Capitals, Detroit Red Wings, St. Louis Blues and Nashville Predators. He also has eight points in 38 playoff games, all with Washington, and was part of the 2018 Stanley Cup championship team.

Photo © Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Swedish D-Man Returns Home On Long-Term Contract Swedish defenseman Gustav Lindström, 26, has signed a five-year contract with Djurgården, the Stockholm-based SHL club announced on Thursday.

American defenseman Jordan Gross, 30, has signed a one-year contract with Traktor Chelyabinsk, the KHL club announced on Friday. Gross played his first season in Europe last season in the KHL with Dinamo Minsk, where he recorded 42 points in 77 regular-season and playoff games.

“In his first KHL season after arriving from overseas, he proved that the increased attention was fully justified – sixth in in scoring among defensemen in the league and an excellent plus/minus are proof of that,” said Traktor GM Alexei Volkov. “Gross has a high hockey IQ, moves the puck well, and is capable of playing both on the boards and in open ice. With his arrival, the Traktor defense gets an established professional, ready to solve serious problems.”

Traktor Chelyabinsk finished first in the KHL’s Eastern Conference last year and was tied for third-best in goals against, so the team does not necessarily have serious defensive problems to solve.

Undrafted upon completing four years at the University of Notre Dame, Gross signed with the Arizona Coyotes late in the 2017-18 season and was immediately assigned to the Tucson Roadrunners of the AHL. Between 2018 and 2014, Gross has spent most of his time in the AHL but has also played 25 NHL games with the Coyotes, Colorado Avalanche and Nashville Predators.

Traktor’s roster includes veteran ex-New Jersey Devil Vladimir Zakharov and prospects Arseni Koromyslov (St. Louis Blues), Semyon Der-Arguchintsev (Toronto Maple Leafs), Matvei Guskov (Minnesota Wild) and Vasili Glotov (Buffalo Sabres).

Photo © Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images

Former NHL D-Man Mark Friedman Signs Two-Year Deal In Sweden Canadian defenseman Mark Friedman, 29, has signed a two-year contract to play for Rögle BK, the SHL club announced on Thursday.

Swedish defenseman Gustav Lindström, 26, has signed a five-year contract with Djurgården, the Stockholm-based SHL club announced on Thursday.

“I’m so incredibly happy and proud to have signed for Djurgården,” said Lindström. “I remember when I was younger and watched hockey at Hovet (Djurgården’s home rink) with my friends. Every now and then, we would just look at each other and say, ‘Imagine playing here one day.’ Now that day is here.”

“Gustav is a very exciting player who has experience from international hockey at all levels,” said club sports director Niklas Wikegård. “At the same time, he’s still at an age where we feel that with him, we will have something to build around over time. We are very happy that Gustav has finally found his home in his beloved Djurgården.”

Lindström was picked in the second round, 38th overall, by the Detroit Red Wings in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft. He played the 2018-19 season in the SHL for Frölunda and then went overseas.

Between 2019 and 2024, Lindström played 174 NHL games for the Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens and Anaheim Ducks, recording 35 points and 80 penalty minutes. He returned to the Montreal organization in 2024-25 but spent the entire season in the AHL with the Laval Rocket.

Lindström joins a Djurgården team that just earned a promotion from the HockeyAllsvenskan and is in the process of building a competitive SHL roster. The team will have the consensus top-two ranked European draft prospects in 18-year-olds Anton Frondell and Victor Eklund, as well as veteran center Marcus Krüger, who was a two-time Stanley Cup champion with the Chicago Blackhawks, and Finnish right winger Jesse Ylönen, who like Lindström, is also returning from North America.

Photo © Marc DesRosiers-Imagn Images

Ex-Hab Signs Two-Year Deal In Sweden American-born Finnish right winger Jesse Ylönen, 25, has signed a two-year contract with Djurgården IF, the Stockholm-based SHL club announced on Tuesday.

Canadian defenseman Mark Friedman, 29, has signed a two-year contract to play for Rögle BK, the SHL club announced on Thursday.

“I’m really looking forward to moving to Sweden and playing for Rögle,” said Friedman. “It feels like a perfect time in life to take this step. You always want to go to the team that shows the most interest, which Rögle did.”

“He’s an intense two-way defender who will contribute offensively with his mobility and defensively with his physique,” said Rögle sports director Hampus Sjöström. “He’s a physical player and possesses a strong character that will add a lot of color to the group. A guy who competes hard in practise and games.”

Originally from Toronto, Friedman played three years at Bowling Green University and was chosen in the third round, 86th overall, in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft by the Philadelphia Flyers.

Between 2018 and early 2025, Friedman played 93 NHL regular-season games for the Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins and Vancouver Canucks, recording 13 points and 80 penalty minutes. He also played six playoff games with Pittsburgh in 2022, recording one assist.

In February 2025, Friedman was traded from Vancouver to the Nashville Predators for future considerations but finished the season with the Milwaukee Admirals of the AHL.

Rögle has been one of the SHL’s more successful teams over the past five seasons but is coming off a year where it finished seventh in the regular season and was eliminated in the play-in round. The team also has under contract for 2025-26 former NHLer Fredrik Olofsson.