Former ice hockey professional Doug Lynch is making his presence felt in Bermuda’s ball hockey league.

Lynch, 40, was chosen in the second round of the 2001 NHL draft by the Edmonton Oilers but spent the majority of his time with the Toronto and Edmonton Roadrunners of the American Hockey League before a brief spell in the big leagues in the 2003-04 season.

Originally from Vancouver, Canada, Lynch is married to a Bermudian, and after joining Applied Computer Technologies during the mid-season draft, he made his local debut in a 7-3 defeat to league leaders Frontier.

Despite that defeat Lynch is enjoying being part of the league and has shared pictures of the Pembroke Community Club rink, which was given a makeover at the end of last year, with his friends who are marvelling at the beauty of the facility.

“It was amazing and while we lost on Friday, it was still fun,’’ Lynch said.

“The community is amazing and it’s fun to be competitive in a safe environment with all your friends.

“It’s much more than just playing ball hockey, it’s connecting with people, and exercise which is good for mental health.

“We have a brand-new floor and I've taken pictures of that rink and shown my buddies in Vancouver and back in North America and they can’t believe it. It has to be the nicest outdoor rink in the world.

Before playing for ACT in the ball hockey league, Lynch appeared in the roller hockey league last summer and was part of Bermuda’s team at the 2022 International Street and Ball Hockey World Championship.

“I arrived in 2022 to get married and one of my friends, Gary Crossman, was coaching the Bermudian ball hockey team,” Lynch said.

“I ended up coming down to the rink just to lend a hand and help out. I just loved the energy from the guys and the ball hockey community, and ended up playing in the World Championship.

“I was qualified to represent Bermuda since I'm married to a Bermudian. It was my first time playing ball hockey and we won the B division at the World Championship.

“I went back to Canada, came to Bermuda on a few occasions but unfortunately the timing didn't work for me to play in the league. My wife and I just came back to Bermuda and we’ll be here for the next few months.”

Lynch did not have much of a challenge in terms of adaptation since the versions of the sport are not so divergent.

“Of course it’s different as you’re running as opposed to skating,’’ he added.

“It’s a little bit slower because you can skate faster than you can run but all the positions are the same and the tactics are the same.

“There are some minor rule differences and the red lines are different as far as gaining the zone. At the end of the day, it’s still hockey, running, shooting and stick handling, so the transition was very easy.”

Lynch’s desire is to help ACT move up the standings by winning their remaining matches before the league heads to the play-offs.

“We’re excited now that I'm here that I can start playing and hopefully ACT has some success,’’ Lynch said.

“There are some very good players in the league and there are a lot of people that I played with at the World Championship.

“The biggest thing in our league is who shows up. People are busy with other commitments, so it depends on who shows up and teams can be very different.

“Of course we want to win. Every time you go to compete, you want to do your best.”