Canadian
center Nicholas Baptiste, 30, has signed a one-year contract with
Dukla Trenčín,
the
Slovak Liga club announced on Friday.
While
Trenčín
hasn’t
had a bad start to the season overall, sitting sixth in the 12-team
league after 10 games, GM Mário
Bližňák expressed
concern over the fact the team has only scored 25 total goals so far.
“We
need to significantly increase our offensive
output
–
this
is one of the steps,”
said
Bližňák,
who
was a center who played in the
NHL,
AHL and WHL.
“We’ve
been
talking
about it with the coaches and the players. I believe that everyone
understands
the situation and is
taking
our on-ice
goals seriously.
“Nick
should be one of the offensive leaders, he has experience from the
top leagues, and he is also at the ideal hockey age,”
Bližňák
said about the 30-year-old
center.
“In
addition, he is an assertive, hard-working player, and that is
exactly what we will expect from him here.”
Born
in Ottawa, Baptiste played junior hockey for the OHL’s
Sudbury Wolves and Erie Otters, and was chosen in the third round,
69th
overall, by the Buffalo Sabres
in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft.
Lawrence Pilut Will Return To Play This Season – Signing Imminent
After not playing at all in the 2024-25 season, Swedish defenseman
Lawrence Pilut has been working out all summer and is expected to
soon sign with the Rapperswil-Jona Lakers of Switzerland’s National
League, Swedish media outlet Expressen reported on Friday.
Baptiste
played 47 NHL games for the Sabres between 2016 and 2018, recording
10 points and 20 penalty minutes. He also played in the organizations
of the Nashville Predators,
Toronto Maple Leafs, Ottawa
Senators and Dallas Stars.
Baptiste
has played in Europe since 2021 – in Finland for both Ilves and
Tappara Tampere, in Germany for Kölner
Haie and the Augsburger Panther, and 11
games in the KHL for Vityaz Moscow Oblast.
Internationally,
Baptiste won a gold medal with the Canadian team at the 2013 IIHF
U-18 World Championship.
