After failing to land an NHL contract, free agent winger Brendan Perlini has decided to give it a go overseas as Ambri-Piotta of the Swiss NLA announced that they have signed Perlini to a contract for the remainder of their season.
It has been a tough run for the 24-year-old who has yet to live up to his first-round draft billing (12th overall to Arizona in 2014). After a sluggish start to his 2018-19 season, Perlini was included in the Dylan Strome–Nick Schmaltz swap, giving him an opportunity for a fresh start with Chicago. He managed a dozen goals in 46 games following the move and it looked like he’d be in good shape for an improved 2019-20 season.
That didn’t happen. Instead, he was a frequent scratch in October and was eventually traded to Detroit for defensive prospect Alec Regula. This change of scenery didn’t work out for him though as he managed just one goal and three assists in 39 games with the Red Wings and was unsurprisingly non-tendered back in October.
Perlini is still certainly young enough to work his way back onto the NHL radar but he’s going to have to show that the offensive skills he showed in junior haven’t completely diminished. That process will now begin in Switzerland.