Czech defenseman Dominik Badinka was drafted in the second round of this summer’s NHL Entry Draft by the Carolina Hurricanes and signed a three-year entry-level contract with the NHL club on July 14. Now, in what is no surprise, the 18-year-old is being loaned back to the Malmö Redhawks – the Swedish club where he played last season.
“We are borrowing Dominik from the Carolina Hurricanes next season, which of course feels very good,” said Redhawks GM Björn Liljander. “Dominik developed very nicely last year and he was rewarded with being drafted and an NHL contract. Now we look forward to continuing to drive Dominik’s development and making him even more ready for the next step.”
A native of Chomutov, Badinka first went to Finland at the age of 16 to play a year for Jokerit in the top Finnish junior league before moving to Sweden last season. In Malmö, Badinka had 13 points in 17 games in the top Swedish junior league and had four points in 33 professional SHL games.
“Dominik is a puck-moving defenseman with good length and mobility,” Hurricanes assistant GM Darren Yorke said at the time of his signing. “He played very well as an 18-year-old against tough competition in Sweden last season, and we’re excited for him to take the next steps in his development.”
“NHL organizations see us as a (positive) developing environment,” said Liljander. “Last year we had Anton Wahlberg on loan from the Buffalo Sabres and this year we have the honor of getting our hands on both Otto Stenberg (of the St. Louis Blues) and Dominik Badinka.”
In addition to Badinka and Sternberg, the Redhawks also currently have NHL prospects Albert Sjöberg (Dallas Stars), William von Barnekow (Buffalo), Lassi Thomson (Ottawa Senators) and Jakub Galvas (Chicago Blackhawks) under contract for 2024-25.
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