The National Hockey League (NHL) of North America is undoubtedly the greatest men’s professional ice hockey league in the world. The question being asked here is, where do former NHL players go to play when they leave the NHL but aren’t quite ready to retire?
Let’s dive in to discover which leagues some NHL players end up going to when their opportunities to play at the top in North America start drying up.
Which popular foreign ice hockey leagues do former NHL players go to?
What happens to professional NHL players when their NHL playing opportunities have faded away? In short, most of them end up playing in one of the top European ice hockey leagues.
There’s still plenty of money to earn in these leagues, and players who adjust well to life abroad can often extend their playing careers for several more years. In fact, the former NHL players who play abroad don’t necessarily have to be ageing players who are about to retire.
For example, In more recent years, we have seen a growing number of younger players who were born in North America (the US or Canada) have one or two seasons in the NHL and then perhaps a season or two in one of the top-flight European leagues to get some experience abroad before returning to have a successful career in the NHL.
Some of the most popular leagues former NHL players tend to go to include the following:
- SHL (Swedish Hockey League) – Sweden
- KHL (Kontinental Hockey League) – Russia
- Liiga – (Finland)
- Czech Extraliga – Czech Republic
In recent years, SHL Live (aka in-play) betting has exploded in popularity, and it’s not just because former NHL players are seen playing in these leagues. Many of today’s most popular iGaming sites offer extremely competitive odds, which is what attracts bettors more than the former NHL players.
Are there any other top-flight European Ice hockey leagues?
Yes. There are many other major top-flight European ice hockey leagues where some former NHL players have ended up having successful careers in the twilights of their careers.
Let’s take a closer look by country at some of Europe’s biggest ice hockey leagues:
Sweden
- Swedish Hockey League
- Allsvenskan
- HockeyEttan (Div. 1)
- Division 2
- Divisions 3 & 4
Finland
- Liiga
- Mestis
- Sumoi Sarja
- II Divisioona
Czech Republic
- Czech Extraliga
- Czech 2 (Chance Liga)
- Czech 3
Russia
- KHL
- VHL
- Russia3
United Kingdom
- EIHL (Elite Ice Hockey League)
- NIHL
Germany
- DEL
- DEL2
- Oberliga
- Regionalliga
Honourable mentions
You also have the NLA, the NLB, the Oberliga, and the Swiss 1st League in Switzerland. In France, you have Ligue Magnus, France 2 (div. 2), France 3 (div. 3), and France 4.
In Norway, you have the GET Ligaen and Norway 2 (1st division), and in Hungary, you have the Erste Liga. Poland is home to the PHL (Polish Hockey League and Poland 2); in Belarus, you have the Belarusian Extraleague and the Belarus Vysshaya.
Ukraine has the Ukrainian Hockey League (UHL). The Netherlands has the BeneLeague and Netherlands 2), and Belgium has the BeneLeaguie and Belgium 2.
Others include the EBEL and the Alps Hockey League in Austria, the Alps Hockey League and the Italian Hockey League Serie A (Italy 2) in Italy, and the Meistriliiga in Estonia.
That’s not all. Other major leagues include the Latvian Higher Hockey League in Latvia, the Liga Nacional De Hockey Hielo in Spain, the Metal Leagen and Denmark 2 in Denmark, and the Tipsport League and Slovakia 2 in Slovakia.
Final note
Some of the most famous former NHL players to have also had successful spells in one or more of these leagues are Mathieu Roy, Paul Bissonnette, Pavel Datsyuk, Dominik Hasek, Jaromir Jagr, Markus Granlund, Ryan Spooner, Reid Boucher, and Nigel Dawes, to name a few.
