Coventry Blaze Ice Hockey Club can today confirm they have signed Slovenian forward Matic Kralj [pronounced Mateece Krarl] for the 2011/12 Elite League season.
The 28-year-old returns to Britain - having iced for Newcastle Vipers two years ago - after finishing the leading point-scorer for French side Morzine-Avoriaz last season.
He is Paul Thompson’s first new import signing for next season and the Blaze coach is delighted to have finally landed his man.
Thompson said to the Blaze offical website: “Matic is a guy I have been chasing for the last three or four years. He first caught my eye during our previous Continental Cup campaigns when he was playing for his Slovenian side.
“He was outstanding for them and the year before he joined Newcastle we were talking but for one reason or another I moved away from him which I regret.
“He is a big, strong guy, he has played a lot in North America so is used to that style of hockey, he sees the ice really well, he has great hands, he has a great release and he can score goals.
“Matic will help take the load off [Luke] Fulghum and [Owen] Fussey and will add to our scoring options. I am confident he will produce offensively as much as those guys.
“He was the leading scorer for his team in France last year and he is hungry and looking forward to coming back to the Elite League. He knows all about the league and I felt it was the right time to bring him in.
“He plays with an edge, he has good size and I am expecting big things from him. I am delighted to have got his signature.”
Kralj helped Slovenia Under-18s to the gold medal in Division Two of the World Championships in 2000/01 and the following season represented his country`s U20 team.
He moved to Lubbock Cotton Kings of the CHL in 2002/03, posting 41 points in 64 games, before also icing for Olimpija Ljubljana in his homeland.
Kralj then spent the next three seasons with Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees in the CHL, accumulating 132 points in 189 games, as well as another spell with Olimpija Ljubljana.
The 2005/06 campaign saw Kralj play for Rocky Mountain Rage, again in the CHL, and he then had spells in Slovenia, Austria and Hungary, where he won the league title, a year later.
After a season with HK Maribor in Slovenia, his first move to Britain came in the summer of 2009 when he joined Newcastle, becoming one of their stand-out players and posting 72 points in 58 games.
A move to France followed for Kralj last season before being persuaded to join Blaze this summer.