Forward Dale Weise becomes first Vancouver Canucks’ player to sign for any European team
Dale Weise, a professional ice hockey player from Canada, who plays for Vancouver Canucks in the National Hockey League (NHL), would be playing in the Dutch Elite Hockey League for Tilburg Trappers.
The 24-year-old right winger is the first Canucks’ player to sign for any overseas or European team since the lockout begun on 15th September.
The Trappers had earlier signed Pittsburgh Penguins’ forward Justin Jeffrey, but the 24-year-old Canadian decided to move to Croatia instead, where he would be playing for Medvescak Zagreb. This made a space for Weise on the roster, which he grabbed to keep
himself fit and in form until the NHL lockout ends.
The Tilburg team is one of the best in their league as they have been most dominant team in last six years. They won titles in 2007 and 2008, and have reached finals of the league championship in five of the last six years.
The Winnipeg, Manitoba native’s agent, Allain Roy talked about his client’s plans as he revealed that the forward wants to remain in action during the lockout and play in a league which is one of the most competitive in the world of ice hockey
“The key is he wants to be 100 per cent ready when the season starts, and it’s not a bad idea to go to a league where you get to be the go-to guy and get the puck a lot, and work on your skills. We haven’t quite pulled the trigger yet, but we’re talking.
We all know Dale can do the other stuff. He’s physical and can skate but on the skill side, he has a little bit more to prove and work on that part of his game”.
Former New York Rangers’ player, who was drafted by them in the 2008 NHL Draft, selected 111th overall in the 4th round. He made his NHL debut for them and played 10 games, in which he failed to score any goals and assists, which led
to him getting waived by them.
In last season, he played 68 games for Vancouver and scored 4 goals and 4 assists for a total of 8 points.
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