23-year-old forward Jiri Sekac won’t be testing free agency this summer. His NHL stint is over for the time being. He has signed a one-year contract with Ak Bars Kazan in the KHL, the team announced Monday.
The un-drafted winger put up 11 goals and 28 points in 47 games for Lev Praha in the KHL at age 21, making him a coveted free agent. He settled on a two-year, entry-level deal with the Montreal Canadiens, where he scored seven goals and 16 points in 50 games before being traded to the Anaheim Ducks for Devante Smith-Pelly.
In Anaheim, his scoring rate stepped up, posting seven points in 19 games, but he was completely shut down in seven postseason matches. He started this season with Anaheim and struggled, scoring just a goal and two assists in 19 games and looking a little out of place. He was traded to Chicago for Ryan Garbutt.
That didn’t last long either. Sekac played just six games before Chicago waived him and he was claimed by the Arizona Coyotes, where he finished out the year by putting up two assists in 11 games.
With his entry-level deal at an end — covering four teams (plus one AHL team) in two years — he’s taking his services elsewhere for the 2016-17 season.
