Canadian defenseman Noel Hoefenmayer, 26, has signed a one-year
contract with KHL club HK Sochi, according
to Russian sports website Championat.com.
Originally from the
Toronto suburb of North York, Hoefenmayer played junior hockey for
the Ottawa 67’s and was chosen in the fourth round, 107th
overall, by the Arizona Coyotes in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft. In
2019-20, he led OHL
defensemen with 82 points and was named the top d-man of both the
OHL and CHL.
Never signed by
Arizona, Hoefenmayer played in the minor-league systems of the
Toronto Maple Leafs,
Edmonton Oilers
and Montreal
Canadiens between 2020 and 2025, appearing in some NHL pre-season
games but never in the regular season. In 189 career AHL
regular-season and playoff games, he recorded 88 points and 243
penalty minutes.
This is
Hoefenmayer’s first contract to play in Europe. He joins a Sochi
team that is coached by former NHLer Vyacheslav Kozlov, but has not
made the playoffs since the 2018-19 season.
Photo © Perry Nelson-Imagn Images: Noel Hoefenmayer (81) of the Edmonton Oilers carries the puck around Calgary Flames defensemen Joni Jurmo (57) during an NHL pre-season game in September 2024.
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