Some time has now passed since the beginning of the offseason and things have quieted down. Teams are still negotiating but most top Polish players are focusing on the upcoming World Championship. Plenty of Polish imports are also competing with their home country at the Division 1 World Championships. It is a busy time in international hockey, but there was still a bit of player movement in Poland.

Beginning of the Offseason (Week 1)

Cracovia Krakow

• As the homegrown movement continues in Cracovia, Sebastian Brynkus will be staying home. Brynkus recorded a career high of 22 points (9G-13A-22PTS) last season with a larger role. He represented Poland during his junior days and has appeared for the senior team at non-IIHF events.

GKS Katowice

• Per Hokej.net, Aleksi Varttinen will stay with Katowice for a third season. The Finnish defender came over from Sport in the Liiga, at the 2023 transfer deadline. The two way defenseman has been one of the highest producing player at his position. He has 47 points (6G-41-47PTS) in 79 games over his season and a half in Poland.

GKS Tychy

• Goalie Kamil Lewartowski has signed up for one more year with GKS Tychy. The 26-year-old has appeared for Tychy since 2016. This past year, as the backup goalie, he appeared in nine games recording a .930 SV%. In his 10 years with the club, he has played in 102 games, the most being 29 during the 2022 season.
• Veteran Belarusian forward Viktor Turkin will also be staying put. Turkin recorded 22 points (12G-10A-22PTS) in 50 games during his first year in Poland. He had previously played in Ukraine, after spending most of his career in Belarus with Yunost Minsk.
• 23-year-old forward Mateusz Ubowski will continue his young career in Tychy. Last year was the best yet with 10 points (4G-6A-10PTS) in 46 games. He represented Poland at both the U18 and U20 level.

JKH GKS Jastrzebie

• No moves this week.

KH Torun

• After a breakout performance during the THL playoffs, Mateusz Studziński wanted a chance to compete for a starting job. It appears Torun will be willing to give him that chance as the club and him agreed to an extension. The 27-year-old goalie has played in 163 games during his senior career in Poland. He twice started for Poland at the IIHF U18s, and once at the U20 level.
• Brothers Kamil Kalinowski and Michal Kalinowski will both continue to be leaders on Torun. The older brother, Kamil, served as captain last season for the club. Kamil Kalinowski has recorded 289 career points (128G-161A-289PTS) in 488 games for six different THL clubs. Michal Kalinowski has mostly played for Torun for his career except for parts of a couple seasons. The young brother has 242 career points (120G-122A-242PTS) in 424 games.

Podhale Nowy Targ

• While Podhale didn’t make any player splashes this week, they did make one on the coaching side. The club hired former Ottawa Senators head coach Dave Allison. Allison started his career as a player coming up in the QMJHL and mostly playing in the American Hockey League (AHL). He had a cup of coffee with the Montreal Canadians in the NHL playing in three games during the 1984 season. He has been coaching hockey since 1987. The Canadian coach has mainly worked at the minor league level in the AHL and IHL. He took over the Ottawa Senators from Rick Bowness during the 1996 season and finished out the year. He also has extensive experience as an NHL scout and junior hockey coach. His most recent job was with the Fairbanks Ice Dogs in the NAHL.

STS Sanok

• No moves for Sanok this week as they continue to figure out their financial situation.

Unia Oswiecim

• Linus Lundin will stay in Oswiecim for a third season! The star goalie was fantastic last year, especially in the playoffs where he had a .937 SV% in 17 matches. The Swedish netminder missed most of the 2022 season with an injury, and proved Oswiecim made the right choice to give him another chance.

Zaglebie Sosnowiec

• Michal Bernacki will continue his journey with Sosnowiec. In his nine seasons with the club, the 25-year-old has played in 247 games scoring 38 goals and assisting on 47. Bernacki represented Poland at both U18 and U20 IIHF events.
• Steady defenseman Oskar Krawczyk will continue to patrol the Zaglebie Sosnowiec blue line in 2025. The veteran defenseman has spent time with both GKS Katowice and Sosnowiec in the THL. He assisted on three goals in 46 games last season. He has received a bit of senior national team consideration in recent years.

Polish Players Abroad

• Filip Stopinski will be staying in the Oberliga with Rostocker EC. He spent the last three years in the Leipzig organization. The forward has split his time between Poland and Germany during his career. He last appeared in Poland for one game during the 2020 season with Janow. He represented Poland at U18 and U20 IIHF events, while also appearing for the senior team in non-IIHF events.
• Adam Kubat will be continuing his junior career in Sweden with Väsby IK J18. Kubat his spent his entire youth career in the Väsby IK system. The 15-year-old was recently named to Poland U18 for the Elite Cup.

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