Ex-Leaf, Cane, Ranger signs with Czech club
© Winslow Townson-Imagn Images - Ex-Leaf, Cane, Ranger signs with Czech clubCanadian center Greg McKegg, 32, has signed a one-year contract with BK Mladá Boleslav, the Czech Extraliga club announced on Wednesday.
“He’s the long-sought-after center,” said Mladá Boleslav sports director Tomáš Vlasák. “He’s the best option we’ve been working on. Greg has a lot of experience, although we are aware that it will be his first time in Europe.”
A third-round draft pick of the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2010, McKegg played 233 NHL regular-season games between 2013 and 2022 for the Leafs, Florida Panthers, Tampa Bay Lightning, Pittsburgh Penguins and New York Rangers, recording 39 points and 65 penalty minutes. He also played 18 playoff games – 14 of which were with the Hurricanes in 2019 – scoring two goals.
McKegg spent the past two seasons in the Edmonton Oilers organization but played both entirely with the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors, recording 20 and 29 points, respectively.
Speaking about what he expects McKegg to bring to his team, Vlasák said, “He’s very good on faceoffs. He had a given role overseas, but we expect him to handle both the power play and the PK here. And last but not least, he’ll be a great personality in the dressing room.”
McKegg becomes the only player on Mladá Boleslav’s roster with any NHL experience, although the team does have two Utah HC prospects: 20-year-old defenseman Aleš Čech and 19-year-old center Vojtěch Hradec. The team captain is longtime Slovak national team defenseman Adam Jánošík.
Mladá Boleslav is four games into its Extraliga season, with two wins and two losses. The team’s next game is Friday at home against five-time reigning champion Oceláři Třinec. McKegg arrived in town on Wednesday and is expected to have his first practise with his new team on Thursday, so it remains to be seen if he’ll be in the lineup for Friday’s game.
Related articles: