Veteran defenseman Korbinian Holzer is moving on after three years with Adler Mannheim

 A week after announcing the departure of veteran winger David Wolf, German club Adler Mannheim on Tuesday announced that defenseman Korbinian Holzer, 36, has also played his last game for the team.

“I came to Mannheim three years ago with the goal of winning as many titles as possible,” Holzer was quoted in the club’s official statement. “We went through some ups and downs and experienced a lot. The potential for a championship was always there, but unfortunately it was never enough. I would have liked to have won titles for the team, the organization, the fans, the city – unfortunately that didn’t work out.”

Born in Munich, Holzer played in Germany until he was 22, including three seasons in the DEL with the Düsseldorf MetroStars. He was a fourth-round pick by the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2006 and joined that organization in 2010. Holzer spent 10 seasons in North America, playing 206 NHL games with Toronto, the Anaheim Ducks and Nashville Predators, and 297 games in the AHL. He then spent the 2020-21 season in the KHL with Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg before joining Mannheim in 2021.

Internationally, Holzer represented Germany at five IIHF World Championships and at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. He was named to the All-Star Team of the 2021 Worlds in Riga, where Germany placed fourth.

A big, defensive defenseman, Holzer has always relied more on his size and physicality than speed or offensive ability. In the mixed zone at the Beijing Olympics, when questioned about the controversy surrounding Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva, Holzer jokingly replied, “Why are you asking me about figure skaters? I’m the worst skater here.”

“Korbinian is exactly what you want in a leader, in a teammate,” said Mannheim head coach and sports manager Dallas Eakins. “His standards are high when it comes to team and commitment. We are very grateful for his tireless commitment, his exemplary behavior and his influence on our organization and wish him all the best for the future.”

No word on where Holzer’s next stop may be, although it will probably be in Germany.