GKS Tychy has made a big move today per hokej.net by potentially adding Mike Szmatula as they try to go for three straight championships.

The Polish-American just had his rookie season in the ECHL. He had 27 goals and 21 assists in 60 games with Adrindock Thunder. His strong season earned him a place in the ECHL all-star game and players of the week honors in February. He was also able to earn two call-ups to American Hockey League with Utica Comets and Stockon Heat where he played 5 games. This was his second time playing for the Thunder. After his college season, he joined the Thunder in the finish to their 2017-18 season. He recorded 5 goals and 5 assists in 23 games across the regular season and playoffs.

The 26-year-old center signed in the ECHL after he completed a 4 year NCAA career between Northeastern and Minnesota. He 47 goals and 61 assists in 139 NCAA games.  Szmatula also has quite the trophy case to his name from his college and junior days. He was named to the United States Hockey League (USHL) First All-Star team in 2012-13, the same year he was apart of the USHL champions, Dubuque Fighting Saints. In his college career, he was named an All-Rookie-Team for Hockey East in 2013-14. He later went on to win the 2017-18 NCAA sportsmanship award.

Given his resume and talents, he could have signed in a stronger league for sure. Szmatula is proud of his Polish heritage though, displaying the Polish flag on his social media profile. Maybe a spot on the Polish national team could be a goal for him one day!

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