SWINDON Wildcats' new signing Carlo Finucci is hoping to prove himself in the English Premier League and put a frustrating summer behind him.

The 28-year-old said the decision to come to Wiltshire was a ‘no-brainer’, having failed to secure a move over the summer.

The Canadian-Italian left wing has left Danish side Rungsted, having guided them to the play-offs with 17 goals and 18 assists last season.

Now Finucci heads to the Link Centre and is hoping to hit the ground running after a summer where he was on the ice four times a week.

“I was contacted last week through an agent and he put me in contact with Stevie and we made things work pretty quickly,” he told the Adver.

“The summer has been tough and it was long. I wanted to take care of not only the hockey but also the living side of things.

“Everything checked out pretty good with the standards I was looking for and I tried to be patient as much as I could. Swindon seemed like a good middle of the pack team, with the chance of competing to get to the top of the table with some help.

“Stevie said it was a good group of guys and that I would have the opportunity to play big minutes and be relied upon every night.

“As a hockey player, you want to be relied upon and you want the game on your stick and that coincides with the stuff away from the rink being so good as well. It seemed like a no-brainer for me.”

Coach Stevie Lyle is delighted to have secured Finucci's services and believes he will be able to come straight into his team.

Lyle is aiming to put the ex-Las Vegas Wranglers player into the first line alongsideSami Ryhanen and Aaron Nell, with Corey McEwen moving into the third line to add some strength in depth.

“We’ve been lucky to secure his services,” said Lyle. “I did a lot of homework on him and I think he is going to be the type of player to get us these four-point weekends we have been missing.

“He is full of energy, he is skilful and he doesn’t give up. He is kind of like a smaller Jan Kostal at the age of 28. As soon as I saw what he could do, I had that feeling that he was the guy for us.

“I think the Sheffield game (on Saturday) will be a great game for him to come in and see what the league is like and then Sunday is last year’s champions (Telford), so that will be an early test.”