Elite League side London Racers have signed Jim Vickers from the Louisiana IceGators of the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL) in North America , where he enjoyed a tremendous 70-game season. The 'Gators won the Central Division of the ECHL Western Conference and went on to reach the Kelly Cup Play-Off semi-finals.

Jim will begin just his third full professional season when he joins the Racers. He played four full seasons of College hockey, before joining the ECHL Jackson Bandits for a post-season run in 2001/02, just missing out on being team-mates with Maxwell who also iced for the Bandits that year. In the season before last he also crossed sticks with Jason Robinson, who he evidently impressed and will now join as team-mate.

From solid hockey stock, Jim's father, Steve, played with IceGators head coach Dave Farrish on the New York Rangers in the late 1970's. Vickers senior was a first-round draft pick in the 1971 NHL Amateur Draft.

Announcing the signing, Head Coach Denis Maxwell was delighted.

"Jim is my kind of hockey player; He's skilful and tough when he needs to be. He's gonna fit in at the Racers this season and along with the rest of the team he's going to make us tough to beat," he said.

Assistant Coach, Jason Robinson, who will lead the defensive unit, added:

"He's a tough opponent. He's a smart hockey player and I'm glad he's going to be playing on my team. He's another reason to be looking forward to this season."