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Longtime Sabre Hecht signs two-year deal in Germany

jochenhechtap

Veteran forward Jochen Hecht has signed a two-year deal with Adler Mannheim of the German league, according to the team website.

Hecht, 35, was without an NHL contract after his four-year, $14.1 million deal with Buffalo expired in June.

A former team captain, Hecht spent the last nine seasons with the Sabres organization and was the active leader in games played, with 566.

His two-year pact with Mannheim sounds similar to the one Colorado’s Ryan O’Reilly signed in the KHL last week -- O’Reilly reportedly has an out clause allowing his return to the NHL should he receive a contract offer.

Here are the Google-translated details of Hecht’s deal, from the Mannheim website:

Jochen Hecht has today signed a contract with the eagles to the end of season 2013/2014, of course, guaranteed him an NHL-out, should an offer of an NHL club there and take it there.

It’ll be interesting to see if Hecht garners any NHL interest based on his play in Germany. He was sidelined for most of 2011-12 with a concussion but, when healthy, can be an effective offensive contributor.

He’s just two years removed from a 21-goal, 42-point campaign with the Sabres in 2009-10.