11th year defenseman Jakub Kindl(46) heads home after ten years playing North American pro hockey to skate with his brother Denis Kindl for HC Plzen of Czech Extraliga.
He leaves having played another 39 NHL games with Florida Panthers taking his total to 331 and even started the campaign with 13 AHL games with affiliate Springfield Thunderbirds but has been under some handsome contracts for the past seven years.
The 32-year old will likely have a lot of fun back where it all first started in juniors.
Jakub Kindl (4)
Florida Panthers‘ 10th year Czech Republic-born defenseman Jakub Kindl(4) is in the final year of a four-year extension he signed in 2013/2014 with draft team Detroit Red Wings (1st round 2005, #19 overall).
He was traded late last season after 8.5 seasons in Michigan.
The fairly large 6’3″ 198 lbs. blue liner has never been the biggest point producer, playing a bit more of a stay-at-home style.
He was mostly on a slingshot recalled and reassigned between minor league affiliate Grand Rapid Griffins and the parent club for most of his time in the Wings‘ system but did skate exclusively in the NHL from 2011-2014.
After being dealt, he appeared in only big league games and one playoff match-up but was sent to farm club Springfield Thunderbirds to start 2016/2017.
The 29-year old is a veteran of 292 games in the show with a nice +25 rating and 256 AHL games with a not so nice -59.
It’s a bit doubtful he’ll score a new contract for next season unless he shows some remarkable uptick in his play and could easily head back to the Czech Extraliga, where he was part of 27 games with HC Pardubice for the lockout of 2012/2013 and also played some of his junior hockey.