Canadian winger Sheldon Rempal, 30, has signed a contract to play the remainder of the current season with Salavat Yulaev Ufa, Russian sports website Championat.ru has reported.

Rempal played for Ufa last season but signed a contract this past summer to play for the Washington Capitals. However, after playing two NHL pre-season games for the Caps, followed by four AHL games for the Hersey Bears, Washington waived Rempel at the player’s request on Thursday for the purpose of terminating his contract.

According to Ufa GM Rinat Bashirov, several KHL teams were interested in signing Rempal, who apparently enjoyed his experience with the team last season, where he recorded 82 points in 87 regular-season and playoff games as the team reached the Eastern Conference finals. Bashirov emphasized Rempal’s relationship with head coach Viktor Kozlov, a former NHLer.

“He’s the guy who will carry the team into the playoffs,” Bashirov said of Rempal. “For Sheldon, the most important thing is having a goal to strive for. He always fights for the team, and last year’s playoffs proved that. Our fans really love Sheldon.”

Born in Calgary, Rempal played two years of college hockey for Clarkson University and, undrafted, signed as a free agent with the Los Angeles Kings in 2018.

Between 2018 and 2024, Rempal played 21 NHL games for the Kings, Carolina Hurricanes, Vancouver Canucks and Vegas Golden Knights, recording two goals, one assist and four penalty minutes.

OFFICIAL: KHL MVP Josh Leivo Signs With New Team Canadian winger Josh Leivo, 32, has signed a one-year contract with Traktor Chelyabinsk, the KHL website announced on Monday.

Last season, Rempal played primarily on a line with fellow North American ex-NHLers Alexander Chmelevski and Josh Leivo – the latter scored a league-record 49 goals and won the MVP. Both players have since moved on from the organization – Leivo as a free agent to Traktor Chelyabinsk and Chmelevski was traded to Ak Bars Kazan.

Other players on the current Ufa roster include fellow Canadians Wyatt Kalynuk and Jack Rodewald. Ufa has only won six of its first 18 games and currently sits last in the conference.

“We expect him to arrive in approximately 10 days,” Bashirov said on Saturday about Rempal’s timeline to rejoin the team. “We need to finalize all the paperwork, and the journey itself is quite long. The team’s coaching staff will decide when he’ll be back on the ice.”

Ex-NHLers Swap Teams In KHL Trade In a trade announced Tuesday between KHL Eastern Conference teams Salavat Yulaev Ufa and Ak Bars Kazan, two ex-NHL players are changing addresses. American center Alexander Chmelevski, 26, is heading to Kazan and Canadian defenseman Wyatt Kalynuk, 28, is heading the other way.