Wojciech Stachowiak was originally hoping that he’d book a second season with the Detroit Red Wings. Instead, he’s delighted to be writing a new chapter in Sweden.
A member of the AHL Grand Rapids Griffins last season after the Red Wings acquired him in a late-season trade, Stachowiak signed a two-year contract with Örebro in Sweden’s top division, the SHL.
“It’s my first season in the SHL, so it will be a new chapter for me, but I think my playing style will fit very well,” Stachowiak told Swedish website Expressen. “I can’t wait to get started and experience the atmosphere.
“I’m really looking forward to coming to Örebro, a team that is ready to be there and fight at the top and win.”
Red Wings Let Stachowiak Walk
Coming to the Red Wings in a deal with the Tampa Bay Lightning, Stachowiak put up 15 points in 10 games for the Griffins. He thought that would be enough to earn a new contract with the Detroit organization.
He thought wrong. The Red Wings didn’t tender him a qualifying offer, making Stachowiak an unrestricted free agent.
“We negotiated and talked a lot,” Stachowiak told the German website Eishockey News. “In the end, it didn’t sound like a priority for them to bring me into the NHL.”
Örebro made Stachowiak a priority after the club lost Finnish forward Teemu Turunen. He recently announced the requirement to remain in Finland for family reasons. They wound up buying Stachowiak out of a contract with Ingolstadt in Germany’s top league, the DEL.
“It’s great to be able to step up and welcome Wojciech to us,” Örebro sports director Henrik Löwdahl told Expressen. “He’s coming off a really strong end to the season in the AHL. In Wojciech we’re getting a very useful player.”