Manchester Storm have confirmed the signing of Canadian forward Mark Heatley for the 2016/17 season.

The 32-year-old has spent the last eight years playing in Germany, most recently in the DEL2 with SC Riesserse where he scored 19 goals last season.

Player/Coach Omar Pacha said: “We have been working on him for the last week or so and we are really glad to get him on board.

“He is one of those centres that I think is tough to get. He is big and strong, has a good reach on him, good vision – a playmaker but he can also score some good goals too.

“He is good on face-offs and that is something that we really struggled with last year, so I think Mark will add a bit of everything.

“I see him playing in my top six forwards, it is no secret he is a guy we are going to lean on a lot.

“That said, it is not just the goals that we looking for from Mark, it is everything else that he brings that will make us a better team.”

Heatley, whose brother Dany won an Olympic gold medal with team Canada in 2010, has won three championships in Germany, most recently in 2014/15 with the Bietigheim Steelers.