Belfast Giants: Slater Doggett signs for Elite League side as Ciaran Long and Lewis Hook sign on

Lewis Hook won the Elite League and Challenge Cup in his two seasons with the Giants

Canadian centreman Slater Doggett has become the latest Belfast Giants recruit as he joined Ciaran Long and Lewis Hook at the Elite League side.

Doggett, 27, was the top scorer in the Alps Hockey League in 2019-20 for the Sterzing Broncos.

Great Britain international Hook was part of the Giants League and Cup double winning squad in 2018-19.

Forward Long also re-signs after his maiden season with the Giants was cut short due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The trio are the second set of additions ahead of the new season, which is scheduled to get underway from 25-26 September following 18 months out of action due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Fan-favourites Darcy Murphy, Kevin Raine and Tyler Beskorowany were announced at the end of June as head coach Adam Keefe begins to build his roster for the new season.

Doggett joins the Belfast Giants following a strong track record in college hockey and a fruitful two years playing in Europe. In spite of pandemic disruptions, he enjoyed valued on-ice time in Slovakia for HC Nove Zamky last season.

He was the top scorer in the Alps Hockey League under Belfast Giants legend, Dustin Whitecotton, with 42 goals and 44 assists in just 44 games in the 2019-20 campaign.

Following his Elite League and Challenge Cup-winning two seasons under Keefe, 24-year-old forward Hook returns to the Giants after winning his maiden GB cap in the World Championships in May.

Long, 30, is also a GB international and his first season with the Giants was cut short due to the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. He returns following a strong run of form for Manchester Storm in the four-team EIHL Series in the spring.