Adirondack Thunder captain Patrick Grasso has signed with HC Innsbruck for the 2024-25 season.
Four more ECHL players have signed with European clubs for the 2024-25 season, including Adirondack Thunder captain Patrick Grasso. The 28-year-old is joining the HC Innsbruck team in Austria next year. Grasso finished with 33 points, scoring 21 goals and making 12 assists in 39 games this past season.
Grasso is joined by Toledo's Jason Willms, Reading's Joseph Nardi, and Indy's Ross MacDougall. Nardi and MacDougall are headed to Pioneers Vorarlberg, which recently also signed Toledo's Brady Gilmour and Kalamazoo's David Keefer and Josh Passolt.
Nardi's departure is a significant loss for the Reading Royals as he led the team in goals (17), assists (33), and points (50) this past year. The 27-year-old was acquired just days before the 2023-24 campaign and had his best professional season by far.
MacDougall was Indy's highest-scoring blueliner, finishing with seven goals and 29 points in 55 games played. The 27-year-old also played six games with the AHL's Rockford IceHogs, recording one point (an assist) in that time.
Willms was a late-season signing for Toledo after finishing his senior season at the University of New Brunswick. The forward recorded six points, with one goal and five assists in seven regular-season games, and added four points in 14 postseason games.