Former Leafs Forward Lands New Contract Outside of the NHL, per Source
Former Maple Leaf Nick Ritchie has found himself with a new home as the forward has decided to sign overseas in Europe in order to continue his career.
Often times, when NHL players find themselves without a deal from a big league team, they either sit as free agents, end up as career minor-leaguers, or take their talents overseas and try to play the European game.
That's what happened with former Maple Leaf Nick Ritchie as he's played in Europe the past two seasons, and recently signed a new deal.
The news was also confirmed on X by Elite Prospects.
It seems some fans are excited for the transfer as well.
Ritchie was a former Top 10 pick in 2014 by the Anaheim Ducks after a stellar OHL career where he had 102 goals and 108 assists in 212 games with Peterborough and Soo.
He spent give seasons with Anaheim with his best scoring season being in 2018-19 where he had nine goals and 22 assists. He finished with 43 goals and 66 assists in 287 games.
He was traded to Boston for Danton Heinen and only spent two seasons there but added 16 goals and 16 assists in 63 games. Signed by Toronto to replace Zach Hyman, he did not manage to succeed with his childhood team, only scoring nine points in 33 games.
He was traded to Arizona for Ilya Lyubushkin and Ryan Dzingel, then was ultimately traded to Calgary for his older brother Brett. He never excelled in either place and did not earn a contract with an NHL team in 2023-24.
His journey in Europe has been one that is filled with a bit of offense and a ton of penalties. This season he has 100 PIM in 19 games, and had an astounding 70 PIM in only 10 games for Karpat in the SM-Liiga.
Ritchie goes from last in the Extraliga with HC Nove Zamky to fourth with Slovan Bratislava.
While it's unknown if Ritchie is going to make an NHL comeback, one thing is for sure is that he's causing havoc in Europe and seems to enjoy his time overseas.
