The Pittsburgh Penguins have added some size to the organization, signing huge forward Radim Zohorna to a one-year entry-level contract. The deal comes on Zohorna’s 24th birthday and represents his first opportunity in North America.
Undrafted, the 6’6″ 233-lbs Zohorna has played at the highest level in the Czech Republic for the last six seasons, scoring 22 points in 46 games during his most recent campaign. Penguins GM Jim Rutherford explained why they are bringing him over now:
Radim is a smart player with good hockey sense that uses his big size to his advantage. His ability to play all three forward positions will help provide depth to our forward group.
While there’s no guarantee that he makes the NHL roster, Zohorna represents another depth option that the Penguins are adding for nothing more than a contract slot. That strategy of mining the college and European free agent ranks for depth players has proven effective for Pittsburgh over the years, allowing them to keep a rotation of inexpensive options rolling through the bottom-six.
I guess the question is, can he skate?
He’s 24. At that size if he could he wouldn’t be signing a 1 year 2 way contract. I’m envisioning Happy Gilmore.