Official signing announcement involving the Detroit Red Wings and a defenseman's left for good

The Detroit Red Wings have lost unrestricted free agent Borgan Rafferty to the SHL, as he has made the jump to Europe.

The former Red Wings player has decided his time in North America hasn't been paying off and signed a two-year deal with Vaxjo of the SHL.

Rafferty was a former Quinnipiac University forward who would make a name for himself playing for three years in the NCAA.

While he'd depart before ever seeing a champion, they'd win in 2023, and he'd be in a small alumni class of 11 players who played 1 game in the NHL.

Though he'd join the Vancouver Canucks after college, he'd only see two games in the NHL and would soon be sent down to the AHL's Utica Comets. This is where he'd spend the majority of his career, playing for teams such as the San Diego Gulls, Coachella Valley Firebirds, and Grand Rapids Griffins.

Rafferty would spend the majority of his time in Detroit with the AHL's Griffins.

He'd play a total of 114 games suiting up for the team's minor-league affiliate.

In that time frame, he'd score 48 points (10-38) and wouldn't even get a shot at a spot in the team's bottom six..

Now, as his career prospects in the best league in North America have ended, he'll play his next two years in the Nordic climate of Sweden, where many other former Red Wings players reside.

He'll play for the Lakers in the SHL, with the hopes that some NHL team will give him another shot.