Nottingham Panthers have confirmed the signing of ‘D’ man Andy Sertich.

The fifth round NHL draft pick of the Pittsburgh Penguins iced 34 times in the AHL, before racking up another 163 games in the ECHL.

Sertich then moved to the top league in Austria for five straight seasons, where he played more than 300 games.

The Croatian international helped Stavanger Oilers to the regular season and play-off titles in Norway last year.

Panthers’ boss Corey Neilson said: “Andy has big numbers to his name and was second in defensive scoring in Austria one year.

“He has a knack of getting the puck to guys in great positions. We need a guy at the top on the powerplay who can draw guys to him, side step them, and feed the net. That’s something that is very much on Andy’s CV.

“He has a great reputation both on and off the ice. He has already played alongside Geoff Waugh, and is described as a great guy and a great person. We are thrilled to have him.”