Branden Troock is heading back to a familiar place for the 2026-27 season.

The Atlanta Gladiators signed the 32-year-old forward after Troock spent the past four seasons playing in Europe. He split last season between HKM Zvolen in Slovakia, Sport in Finland’s Liiga, and HC Vítkovice in Czechia, recording six goals and nine assists in 36 games.

His return also brings him back to the ECHL for the first time since 2021-22, when he recorded 25 goals and 30 assists for 55 points in 51 games with the Allen Americans. Atlanta fans may also remember Troock from his previous stint with the Gladiators. He appeared in 30 games for Atlanta across the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons, recording 11 goals and 16 assists for 27 points.

This time, the move carries a little more meaning away from the rink. Troock and his wife wanted to bring their family back to North America after several years overseas. His son was born in Atlanta during Troock’s previous stint with the Gladiators, making the return something of a homecoming for him, too.

“We really enjoyed our time when we were in Atlanta, so when this came up, we were really excited and happy that it worked out,” Troock said during Atlanta’s Player Signing Show (Atlanta Gladiators, 2026b).

Coming Home to North America

Troock enjoyed his four seasons in Europe, but last year looked different. His wife and children remained home while he played overseas, something he admitted proved harder than he expected. Troock started the season in Slovakia before moving to Finland and eventually Czechia. The hockey remained enjoyable, but spending the season away from his family changed the experience.

“The hockey was great, but it just wasn’t really right for myself and the family at that point,” Troock said (Atlanta Gladiators, 2026b).

That experience helped shape the family’s plans for this season. Troock and his wife decided they wanted to remain in North America, especially with their children getting older and starting school. When Atlanta became an option, the familiarity made the choice even easier.

The family will return to a city they already know, but life will look considerably busier than it did during Troock’s first stint. His son plans to play hockey in the Gladiators’ youth program, while his daughter will take dance classes.

There is also something fitting about bringing his son back to the city where he was born.

Four Years of European Hockey

Four seasons overseas gave Troock a chance to experience several different versions of the game. He played in Germany, Sweden, Slovakia, Finland and Czechia, finding noticeable differences in how teams approached hockey from one country to another.

Sweden and Finland leaned toward a more defensive game, with Troock describing plenty of 1-0 and 2-1 scores. Slovakia and Czechia offered more offense and a faster back-and-forth style. Germany felt the most familiar.

Troock found the German game closest to the North American style, with more North American players, bigger bodies and an emphasis on battles along the boards. Of all his European stops, he called Germany his favorite from a hockey standpoint.

The experience gave him more than different styles of hockey. Troock also enjoyed getting to know the cultures and, as a self-described foodie, trying the food in each country.

Now he returns to a North American game that has changed since he first turned professional. Troock believes hockey has become faster and more skilled over the years, forcing players to find ways to adjust.

For him, one thing has remained consistent.

“I like to shoot the puck, have a heavy shot,” Troock said. “Just try to find those open spots and shoot” (Atlanta Gladiators, 2026b).

Speed, Size and a Heavy Shot

At 6-foot-2 and 210 pounds, Troock has the size to battle for space, but he doesn’t describe himself simply as a physical forward. His game starts with getting up the ice and putting himself in position to use one of his biggest strengths: his shot.

“I’d say north and south player,” Troock said. “I like to use my speed and my shot” (Atlanta Gladiators, 2026b).

Troock also uses his frame along the boards, something that fits naturally with the style he enjoyed playing in Germany. As the game has gotten faster, however, he has learned that size alone doesn’t create scoring opportunities. Finding open areas and reading where space will develop have become just as important.

That combination has worked throughout his ECHL career. Troock has recorded 73 goals and 89 assists for 162 points in 174 games with Idaho, Greenville, Atlanta, Maine, South Carolina, Toledo, and Allen.

Gladiators Head Coach and Director of Hockey Operations Matt Ginn sees the shot and size as two pieces that can immediately help Atlanta.

“Branden is a dynamic forward that is a threat anytime he is on the ice. He is a big body that moves well and has an elite shot,” Ginn said (Atlanta Gladiators, 2026a).

Troock’s last ECHL season showed what that can look like offensively. He produced 55 points in 51 games with Allen before heading overseas.

Several years and several leagues later, he comes back with the same shot but considerably more experience behind it.

Milestones Ahead

Troock returns to the ECHL within reach of several career milestones. He enters the 2026-27 season with 73 goals and 89 assists for 162 points in 174 ECHL games. His first could come early in the season. Troock needs 11 assists to reach 100 in his ECHL career. He is also 26 games away from 200 career games and 27 goals away from 100.

The 200-point mark is also within reach. Troock needs 38 points to get there after averaging 0.93 points per game over his ECHL career. His last season in the league showed that level of production, as he recorded 25 goals and 30 assists for 55 points in 51 games with Allen.

Thirteen Years of Lessons

Troock enters his 13th professional season with experience that stretches well beyond the ECHL. The Dallas Stars selected him in the fifth round, 134th overall, of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, and he went on to play 130 AHL games with the Texas Stars, Tucson Roadrunners, Hartford Wolf Pack, and Cleveland Monsters. He was also part of the Texas Stars’ 2014 Calder Cup championship team. Troock recorded 16 goals and 26 assists for 42 points at the AHL level.

Early in his career, Troock watched veteran players to learn how professionals trained and took care of themselves. Now he finds himself on the other side of those conversations.

“You kind of want to help some of the younger guys as well come up and show them the good habits and what it is to be, like, a day-to-day pro,” Troock said (Atlanta Gladiators, 2026b).

His advice starts with taking care of the body. Troock recalled Craig MacTavish and Kevin Lowe stressing that lesson to him when he was younger. Staying healthy matters in a sport where an injury can quickly create an opportunity for somebody else.

He also tells younger players not to let the inevitable dry stretches take over their season. Points, goals and wins sometimes arrive in bunches, while other stretches seem to offer nothing.

“Just be consistent, stay with it, and it all adds up and works out in the end,” Troock said (Atlanta Gladiators, 2026b).

Ginn believes that experience will matter in Atlanta, calling Troock’s time at high levels “very valuable for our group” (Atlanta Gladiators, 2026a).

A Welcome to Pro Hockey

Troock can laugh now about one of the lessons from his rookie season. Early in his first professional year, his team faced the Grand Rapids Griffins. Troock was 20 years old, a big young player trying to establish himself with his teammates, when one of Grand Rapids’ veteran heavyweights asked him to fight.

Troock accepted.

“I was like, hey, I’m a pretty big guy, like, let’s endear myself to my teammates,” Troock recalled (Atlanta Gladiators, 2026b).

There was one problem. He didn’t realize exactly who had challenged him.

“It was a young 20-year-old going against the veteran-established fighter, and didn’t really go my way,” Troock said (Atlanta Gladiators, 2026b).

Thirteen professional seasons later, dropping the gloves can still be part of Troock’s game, but he isn’t looking for fights. If emotions rise, a teammate needs defending or the bench needs a spark, he won’t shy away from it.

“It’s not anything that I go out looking for, but if it presents itself when it’s needed, I mean, it’s definitely there,” Troock said (Atlanta Gladiators, 2026b).

It’s a long way from the 20-year-old rookie trying to make an impression against Grand Rapids. Troock now returns to Atlanta as one of the experienced players younger Gladiators can turn to for exactly those kinds of lessons.

Back in Atlanta

Troock has kept busy while preparing for his return. He started a landscaping and lawn-care company about five or six years ago and spent much of this summer balancing the business with skating and training. He has been on the ice two or three times a week with a group of roughly 15 to 16 players, mixing drills with three-on-three and four-on-four play.

That preparation will soon shift toward training camp and the start of the regular season, and Troock already has a familiar opponent waiting. Atlanta opens the season in Greenville on Oct. 16, giving him an early matchup against one of his former teams.

“I think it’s always kind of cool to play against teams that you’ve played for before,” Troock said. “It’s a little familiar place, familiar rink” (Atlanta Gladiators, 2026b)..

Atlanta also gives Troock something few destinations could offer: familiarity without everything feeling the same. He knows the organization and the area, but he returns with four more seasons of hockey experience and a chance to introduce his family to a different version of the city they already know.

For Troock, it’s a return to Atlanta with plenty to look forward to — both on the ice and away from it.

Atlanta Gladiators. (2026a, September 16). Gladiators agree to terms with forward Branden Troock [Press release].

Atlanta Gladiators. (2026b, September 16). Player signing show: Branden Troock [Video]. YouTube.