Former NHL player Andy Delmore lands one-year contract with KHL's Medvescak Zagreb
Andy Delmore, a former defenseman in the National Hockey League (NHL) who could not land a permanent roster spot with the major league franchises, has signed a one-year contract with Medvescak Zagreb club in the Klub Hokeja na Ledu (KHL), situated in Croatia.
It was learned earlier in July of this year that Delmore had left for the Erste Bank Eishockey Liga (EBEL), which is a European league which consists of 11 teams of various countries and entered into a try-out contract with the team and after finally impressing
the management; the Canadian player has struck a more finalised deal with the franchise.
Since joining the club, Delmore has not had a better time playing the game which he loves so much.
"I was interested in the opportunity in Zagreb because my good friend Greg Day plays here", Delmore said to the team's official site. "I also played before with (current Medvescak player) Alan Letang and (assistant coach) Don MacLean and briefly with Frank
Banham. I felt like I already knew the team, so I concluded that coming to Zagreb would be good for my career and life, as well as the lives of my wife and daughter. I felt like we would fit in here. I also heard a lot about Croatia from friends back in Canada".
The Lasalle, Ontario, Canada native, was undrafted and picked up after a number of brilliant performances in the major league teams in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) and American Hockey League (AHL).
The enforcer played his first two NHL games with Philadelphia Flyers during the 1998-1999 season, in which he picked up a single assist. He went back and forth between Flyers and their affiliate in the AHL, Philadelphia Phantom, for the next two seasons
until landing a more permanent position with Nashville Predators from the 2001-2002 season until 2002-2003 following a move to Buffalo Sabres.
His record high came with Predators, where he scored 38 point (16 goals, 22 assists) in 73 games. Delmore’s last NHL performance was with Columbus Blue Jackets during the 2005-2006 season, after which he failed to continue in the major league.