Release from 12.12.2023

Capitals sign defenceman Seamus Donohue

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The spusu Vienna Capitals signed defender Seamus Donohue. The 27-year-old most recently played for ECHL side Idaho Steelheads. Two years ago, the US-American already spent one season in Europe with Finnish Liiga club SaiPa.

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Born in Minnesota, Seamus Donohue attended St Thomas Academy in Mendota Heights as a youngster and became a two-time state champion with his high school. In the 2015-16 season, the American moved to the BCHL with the Penticton Vees, with Donohue captaining the NAHL's Wichita Falls Wildcats the following season. He then switched to college ice hockey. Donohue played for Michigan Tech from 2017 to 2020. In his first season, the American won the WCHA Conference with the Huskies. The following season, he was named his team's most outstanding defenceman. In the 2020/21 season, Donohue transferred to his home state and started playing for St. Cloud State University. The defenceman made it to the final of the NCAA tournament with the team in 2021. In the final, however, Donohue and Co. were defeated by the University of Massachusetts. The American, who played three of his five college seasons as an alternate captain, scored 80 points (9 goals + 71 assists) in 183 college games for Michigan Tech and St. Cloud State University. Donohue spent the remainder of the 2021-22 season with the South Carolina Stingrays of the ECHL. The defenceman recorded five assists in seven games.

Important part of the Steelheads
In the 2022/23 season, Donohue ventured to Europe for the first time. The left-shot defenceman joined the Finnish Liiga club SaiPa. In 59 games, the US-American recorded 15 points (2 goals + 13 assists). This made Donohue the third-best defenceman in the Finnish first division in terms of points. Last summer, the defenceman moved back to the USA to join the Idaho Steelheads from the ECHL. Donohue promptly took on an important role on the Dallas Stars' ECHL affiliate team. With 18 points (3 goals + 15 assists), the 27-year-old is the ECHL's top scoring defenceman along with Patrick Kudla. In his 29 ECHL games to date, Donohue has collected 23 points (3 goals + 20 assists). That's an average of 0.79 points per game. In the current season, the US-American's points average is 0.82. On the other hand, the 27-year-old has only collected ten penalty minutes in the ECHL. The plus/minus balance is clearly positive with a value of +16.

"I started my season with the Idaho Steelheads because they are a first-class organisation in the ECHL and I didn't feel comfortable with the other offers in the summer. Now I've chosen Vienna because I've heard great things about the city and the organisation. I think I can help the spusu Vienna Capitals as a player and I'm excited about this opportunity. I learnt a lot in Finland last season. I have matured as a player in a foreign environment and have been able to adapt to the style of play in Europe. Therefore, I expect the learning curve this time will not be as steep as in the previous season. I'm a two-way defenceman who prides himself on defending hard in his own zone. At the same time, I want to contribute offensively and take advantage of the opportunities that come my way," says Caps new arrival Seamus Donohue.

The club, on the other hand, parted ways with defender Stefan Warg and goalie Adam Ohre.