Following on from last week's arrival of Sean Richards, The Bespoke Guardians Swindon Wildcats are now thrilled to announce the signing of Matthew Vermaeten from Valenciennes in the French 2nd Division.


The 25-year-old Canadian forward posted 33 points in 27 games as Valenciennes finished 9th out of 16 in Division 1 last season.


Before moving to France, Matthew spent time in his native Canada before moving to college in the USA at Canisius. In his final season at Buffalo University, he was also named Captain. He was also previously captain of the Rockland Nationals from 2019 to 2021 before moving to College in the USA.


After a year in France, he’ll be heading to Swindon for his first taste of hockey in the UK and will provide added scoring for the Wildcats this year.


Swindon Wildcats Head Coach Aaron Nell said:


"Bringing Matthew to Swindon is something I’m really pleased about. He’s a quick forward who has shown his leadership skills throughout his young career so far. I’ve got good reports on the player but also on the person he is, and that’s something big for me. He had a good year in France last season, and we’re hoping he continues to add scoring to our lineup this year."