Goodbye Times Two

I guess you can scratch two veterans off the list. Both Ryan Lang and Kevin Baker are off to Europe. Kevin Baker will be playing in the top tier of Italian hockey for Sportverein Ritten-Renon, in Ritten. A translation (courtesy of google) from the team website...

"After a few weeks ago with Erwin Kostner has assumed a new coach at the helm Winners and runners-up, now some movement in the transfer activity at the front Rittner player. And like the first new addition comes with a promise to Curriculum's high plateau.
It is at the 31 - year-old goalscorer Kevin Baker. Baker was on 15 June 1979 Born in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, and began his career with the Belleville Bulls in the Ontarrio Hockey League.
Already there he could do with performance ausseroredentlichen attention to himself and was consistent in 1999, drafted by the Los Angeles Kings in the seventh round.
Overall, it brings the physically strong (186 cm / 87 kg) and as a cold-blooded enforcer force on 83 missions AHL (36 points) and 249 games in the ECHL, where Kevin Baker outstanding 297 points (141 goals / 156 Assist) won in his account could.
Peak of his career is certainly the 2008/09 season, where he was reached by 102 points for the top scorer at 57 goals and thus to the MVP, so the best players throughout the ECHL, was elected. A Einbrufung was the first ECHL All Star Team of the result."

Ryan Lang is off to play in the Netherlands for Eindhoven Kemphanen in the top tier of the Dutch hockey league, in Eindhoven. A translation from a dutch hockey website...

"Travis Banga long after the second new addition this week for the ambitious team from Eindhoven. Long begins his seventh season and was previously elected to the all-star team of the ECHL. Last season, the center sixteen goals and eighteen assists in 56 games with 59 penalty minutes. That was the number six on the score list of the team.
Lang is from Regina in Canada as a junior and chose the route through an American university. Four seasons, the 1.78 big forward from the University of Alaska Fairbanks. He was several years including a teammate of former Trapper Aaron Grosul. After graduating, he moved to the ECHL, the league where he spent most of his career has played.In between came a call a few times looking for different teams in the ECHL, and he made a trip to Italy, where he came Alleghe. His most successful season in 2006-07 when he had it for the Augusta Lynx in 61 games 25 goals and 48 assists to his name released. He was the top scorer of the team.The new Ruff is known as a very fast attacker. "Ryan will be a revelation to the Dutch skating rinks. His tremendous speed and focus are a scourge to our opponents, "said Tommie Hartogs behalf Eindhoven."

I'm really sad to see both guys go (and maybe really really sad to see Lang go). This, tied with the list of player given qualifying offers, seems to hint at the team going for a younger look. As exciting as that is, I'm definitely going to miss these two veterans.