Free agent and 1st rounder Nick Ritchie signs new deal to join his brother

While left winger Nick Ritchie would have preferred to get another shot with a team in NHL, it is a contract for the rest of this season to play for Slovak Extraliga club HC Nové Zámky that he signed on Thursday. Reports in Slovakia indicated that Nick Ritchie signed in the Slovak Extraliga and will be joining his older brother Brett, who plays for HK Nitra.

Nové Zámky and Nitra team are scheduled to face each other Nov 3 in Nitra, Dec 26 and Jan 14 in Nové Zámky and Feb 18 back in Nitra. The two cities are just 38 km apart and are league rivals.

Nick Ritchie, who was selected in the first round, 10th overall, of the 2014 NHL Entry Draft by the Anaheim Ducks, last played in the NHL back in 2022-23 as a member of the Calgary Flames. He has signed remained a free agent, though he spent most of the past season in Europe.

Between 2015 and 2023, Ritchie played 481 NHL regular-season games with the Ducks, Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, Arizona Coyotes and Flames, putting up a total of 186 points and 483 penalty minutes.

Ritchie attempted to stick in the NHL on a professional tryout agreement with the St. Louis Blues in 2023, but did not crack the roster and went on to sign with Kärpät Oulu in the Finnish Liiga. He managed to record five points in 10 games before receiving an eight-game suspension for throwing several punches to the head of an opponent – Markus Nurmi of TPS – who was vulnerable and lying on the ice.

Kärpät then terminated his contract, which led to Ritchie playing the final eight games of the season with the Iserlohn Roosters in Germany’s DEL.

This season will be spent HC Nové Zámky, not too far from brother Brett.