ECHL: Kansas City Mavericks Forward Heads Overseas

The Kansas City Mavericks have another player heading overseas. This news comes after fan favorite and leading scorer Cade Borchardt left for KalPa in Finland at the end of May. Confirmed Saturday morning, Damien Giroux has signed a one-year contract with HK Spišská Nová Ves of the Slovak league.

Making It to the Pros

Giroux, a 25-year-old left winger from Ontario, Canada, grew up playing with the Sudbury Minor Wolves before moving on to the Sudbury Nickel Capital Wolves. He began his Ontario Hockey League (OHL) career in the 2016–17 season. After four years with the Saginaw Spirit, he was named alternate captain in his second year. Giroux was drafted in the fifth round, 155th overall, by the NHL’s Minnesota Wild. His skills and leadership earned him the captaincy in his final two seasons in Michigan. In 249 OHL games, he recorded 101 goals and 93 assists for a total of 194 points.

Giroux would sign a three-year contract with the NHL’s Wild after completing that fourth season in the OHL. He would not see NHL play right away; instead, Giroux was assigned to the Wild’s AHL affiliate, the Iowa Wild, for three seasons. During this AHL time, Damien would see the Show joining the NHL Wild on April 13th, 2022, against the Nashville Predators. Giroux’s time with the Wild affiliates would come to an end when he was not offered a contract extension. Giroux would stay in the AHL, joining the Rochester Americans for 30 games before closing out his AHL time. Giroux competed in 179 games, scored 17 goals and 42 assists, and earned a collective 59 total points during his AHL time. 

ECHL Bound

During the 2023–2024 season, team management assigned Damien Giroux to the ECHL for development with the Jacksonville Icemen. Once again, finding himself without a contract, Giroux would sign with the AHL Coachella Valley Firebirds. However, Giroux wouldn’t play a game with the Firebirds. Instead, he would be assigned to their ECHL affiliate, the Kansas City Mavericks. This would be Damien’s second time competing at this level and the best season of his career. With the Mavericks, Giroux played 67 games with 26 goals, 30 assists, and 56 total points. This would bring Damien’s total ECHL games to 84, with 33 goals and 38 assists, for a total of 71 points. 

The Mavericks unveiled their protected list this week, and Giroux didn’t make the cut. With their top two goal scorers now gone, Kansas City must explore new options this offseason to reload and uphold the high standards fans expect from a division champion. With the end-of-season roster deadline looming, it will be interesting to see how the Mavericks respond.