Thirty-one-year-old Kempný became a free agent after last season, after his four-year, $10 million contract with Washington expired. The native of Hodonín helped the Capitals win the first Stanley Cup in history in 2018. Kempný came to the NHL as an undrafted player in 2016 after a one-year stint in Omsk and played for Chicago until he was traded in February 2018.
The 31-year-old defenseman became a free agent after last season, after his four-year, $10 million contract with Washington expired. The native of Hodonín helped the Capitals win the first Stanley Cup in history in 2018. Kempný came to the NHL as an undrafted player in 2016 after a one-year stint in Omsk and played for Chicago until he was traded in February 2018.
Kempné’s career was hampered two years ago by an Achilles tendon injury, for which he had to undergo surgery in October 2020. The former Comets player did not return to the NHL until two days before the end of last year and played only 15 games for the Capitals in the rest of the season. He added another 24 duels on the farm in Hershey. At the World Championships in May, he joined the Czech national team in the third game and was a member of the team that ended the Czechs’ wait for a medal after 10 years.
In total, Kempný played 247 games in the NHL, in which he scored 15 goals and had 48 assists. The jersey of Seattle, which has completed its first season in the elite competition, will be the first Czech hockey player to wear it. Last July, the Kraken selected goaltender Vítek Vaněček from Washington in the expansion draft, but traded him back to the Capitals after a week.
