The Orlando Solar Bears have announced that forward Sean Avery has been signed to an ECHL Standard Player Contract. Avery will begin his tenure with the Solar Bears on the team’s reserve list.

Avery, 41, joins Orlando after last playing professional hockey during the 2011-12 season with the NHL’s New York Rangers and the Connecticut Whale of the American Hockey League.

A veteran of 10 seasons in the NHL with New York, Dallas, Los Angeles and Detroit, Avery brings 580 games of major league experience, collecting 247 points (90g-157a) and 1,533 penalty minutes. He twice led the NHL in penalty minutes during the 2003-04 and 2005-06 campaigns.

The 5-foot-10, 194-pound forward also has 124 regular season games of AHL experience with Hartford/Connecticut, Grand Rapids Griffins and Cincinnati Mighty Ducks, recording 62 points (32g-30a) and 539 penalty minutes. Avery has also played overseas for Finnish club Pelicans, tallying two goals, and his pro resume includes a stint at the “AA” level with the now-defunct United Hockey League’s Motor City Mechanics, where he notched 26 points (15g-11a) in 16 games.

Prior to turning pro, the native of North York, Ontario played in the Ontario Hockey League for the Kingston Frontenac and Owen Sound Platers, where he amassed 253 points (87g-166a) and 564 penalty minutes in 221 combined games.