VANCOUVER — Troy Stecher is coming home.
The Vancouver Canucks signed the undrafted free agent defenceman to a two-year contract on Wednesday.
The 22-year-old from nearby Richmond, B.C., just finished his junior season at the University of North Dakota where he helped the Fighting Hawks capture the NCAA Frozen Four tournament over the weekend for the school's eighth national title.
Stecher led North Dakota defencemen with eight goals and 21 assists in 43 games this season. In his three years at the university, he scored 13 goals and added 40 assists in 119 games and was named an assistant captain for the 2015-16 campaign.
The five-foot-11, 191-pound defender told The Canadian Press last week that the Canucks were one of the NHL teams on his list of potential suitors if he decided to forgo his senior season and turn pro.
"My dad used to have season tickets to the Canucks with his old company," Stecher said in a phone interview. "When I was a little kid I dreamed about playing for the Canucks."
A late-round pick of the WHL's Portland Winterhawks in 2009, Stecher chose instead to play in the second-tier BCHL with the Penticton Vees to get stronger and work on his game before going the U.S. college route.
He was passed over in three straight NHL drafts from 2012 to 2014, but started to turn heads the last two seasons.
The Canucks, who finished 28th overall in 2015-16, are relatively thin in terms of defence prospects, meaning that Stecher could be given a shot to show what he can do sooner rather than later.
"You're not drafted, so you're pretty disappointed," Stecher said before signing with Vancouver. "Now you're finally starting to get a lot of interest from different teams, so you feel excited."
The Canucks selected North Dakota teammate Brock Boeser with the 23rd pick at last June's draft, but the winger announced earlier this week he will return to the Fighting Hawks for his sophomore season.
