Kirkcaldy Kestrels’ ‘D’ man Josh Saunders has signed a two-way deal with Elite League (EIHL) club Dundee Stars.
The move will give Saunders the opportunity to train and play with the Stars while continuing his development with the Kestrels and Fife Falcons.
The 18-year-old is aiming to follow in the footsteps of former Kirkcaldy junior Craig Moore, who took a similar route before establishing himself in the EIHL.
Saunders, who played for Great Britain U18 last season, will also split his time with a National League club next season.
“I am excited to be signing with the Stars and playing in the Elite League has been a dream of mine for as long as I can remember,” Saunders said.
“The opportunity from Marc (LeFebvre) will accelerate my development and I am eager to learn from both him and the team in the coming season.
“I cannot wait to experience playing in front of the fans, who are known as one of the best in the league.”
The Stars head coach considered several options this summer but decided Saunders was the right man for the job.
“Defensemen are hard to come by, especially young, developing ones and I looked around but I kept coming back to Josh,” LeFebvre said.
“He was on the Under 18s GB team last year and we can see he has some potential at the national team level as well.
“As far as I am concerned it is fair game to get players in and he is a guy that we believe we can bring into our system, just like we did with Craig all those years ago.”
“Josh will get the best of both worlds as he will be playing in a good organisation with the Kestrels and have an opportunity to train with us.”