Double boost! Igor Merezhko and Olivier Archambault are heading to Pilsen

After twenty-four hours, HC Škoda Plzeň announces other new faces in its squad – they are Ukrainian full-back Igor Merezhko and Canadian forward Olivier Archambault. For the time being, both are coming to West Bohemia with a one-year contract.

“We have watched Oliver for a long time and we think he is a player with great individual ability. He can score a goal, but he can also find teammates with a great pass. On top of that, he has very good movement, so we believe he will be a reinforcement,” says the club’s general manager Martin Straka and adds: “Igor is in a similar situation. Tall guy, right-handed, incredibly productive. In addition, he has experience with Canadian hockey, where he worked for a long time. He had good numbers in Slovakia, so we believe he will carry that over to Pilsen as well.”

Almost two-meter sharp back Igor Merezhko with its weight of one hundred kilos, it comes to the west of Bohemia to significantly strengthen the defensive lines. The twenty-five-year-old native of Kharkiv already went through a number of foreign engagements at a young age.

A regular representative of his country, who often wore the captain’s C on his chest, in addition to the competitions of his native country, he went through the youth academy of Salzburg in Austria, the Russian VHL, the Danish competition and spent four seasons in the Canadian WHL.

To the West of Bohemia, however, he comes from Slovakia, where he played 64 games in the playoffs for Spišská Nové Ves and recorded 57 points (11+46).

A thirty-one-year-old predatory scorpion is also coming from the same team to the west of Bohemia Olivier Archambault. A native of Le Gardeur, Canada, he was drafted 108th overall by the Montreal Canadiens in 2011.

However, the productive forward did not make it to the most famous competition, but managed almost a hundred games with an average of practically half a point per game in the AHL. He also spent seven years with an average of more than a point per game in the ECHL, as well as five seasons in the QMJHL.

At the same time, he will become the thirteenth Canadian to ever appear in a Pilsen jersey. He represented his country at the unofficial Under-17 World Championship, and was most recently active in Europe. In the Austrian and Slovak top leagues, he excelled every time, averaging more than a point per game.