American-Canadian defenseman Cal Foote, 25, has signed a one-year contract with HK 32 Liptovský Mikuláš, the Slovak Liga club announced on Wednesday.
Foote was chosen in the first round, 14th overall, by the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2017. Between 2018 and 2024, Foote played 145 NHL games with the Lightning, Nashville Predators and New Jersey Devils, recording 20 points and 137 penalty minutes. He also played 13 playoff games, all with Tampa Bay in 2022 when the team reached the Stanley Cup final.
Foote’s younger brother Nolan currently plays in the New Jersey organization. Their father, Adam, is an assistant coach for the Vancouver Canucks.
Foote was born in Englewood, Colorado while his father, also a defenseman, was playing for the Colorado Avalanche. A dual Canadian-American citizen, Foote played for Canada at the 2018 IIHF World Junior Championship, winning a gold medal.
On January 24, 2024, Foote and New Jersey teammate Michael McLeod were granted indefinite leaves of absence from the team.
On January 30, 2024, Foote was one of five members from that 2018 team charged with sexual assault, stemming from a 2018 team event in London, Ontario. Others charged were McLeod, Dillon Dubé, Carter Hart and Alex Formenton. The charges have not been proven in court and Foote’s representatives have said that he will plead not guilty.
Foote is the third of the five players charged to sign with clubs in Europe. Dubé signed with Belarus-based KHL team Dinamo Minsk on July 1 and McLeod signed with Kazakhstan-based KHL team Barys Astana on August 2.
Foote is not the first player surrounded by controversy to join the Slovak Liga this off-season. In June, 20-year-old Finnish center Topi Rönni – a second-round draft pick of the Calgary Flames in 2022 – signed with Dukla Michalovce three months after being convicted of sexual assault in Finland.
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