Former NHLer Kevin Labanc signs deal with KHL’s Shanghai Dragons
A longtime depth forward is moving overseas.
On Wednesday, the Shanghai Dragons of the Kontinental Hockey League announced that the team has signed forward Kevin Labanc for the remainder of the 2025-26 season.
The Shanghai Dragons have announced the signing of forward Kevin Labanc to a contract through the remainder of the season, adding experience, creativity, and scoring ability to their lineup.
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Dragons general manager Igor Varitsky likes the addition of some former NHL talent.
“We continue to strengthen our forward corps, focusing on skill, creativity, and scoring,” Varitsky said in a release. “Labanc is a top-6 caliber winger whose NHL career speaks for itself. He’s a right-handed forward who thrives in offensive situations, generates chances, and finishes plays. He’s also effective on the power play. Multiple KHL clubs were interested, so we’re thrilled that Kevin chose to join the Shanghai Dragons.”
Labanc had been invited to the Carolina Hurricanes‘ training camp on a professional tryout. The veteran winger performed rather well, registering three assists in five preseason games. However, it wasn’t enough to crack the team’s roster.
It comes after Labanc earned himself a contract last fall. After signing a PTO with the New Jersey Devils, the Brooklyn, N.Y. native earned himself a one-year contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets. He ended up playing 34 games before suffering a shoulder injury that required surgery, prematurely ending his season. In his one season in Columbus, Labanc scored two goals and 10 assists for 12 points.
Labanc is best remembered for his extended time with the San Jose Sharks, the team that took him in the sixth round of the 2014 NHL Draft. He played parts of eight seasons in San Jose, with his best season coming during the 2018-19 campaign, in which he set career highs in goals (17), assists (39) and points (56). That year, he helped the Sharks advance to the Western Conference Final.
In 512 regular-season games in the NHL, Labanc scored 84 goals and 153 assists for 237 points, with another 14 points in 30 Stanley Cup Playoff contests.