Sharks' Douglas Murray signs with hometown club Djurgarden

San Jose Sharks defenseman Douglas Murray has signed with the Djurgarden hockey team based out of his hometown of Stockholm, Sweden, the hockey club's website said. Murray moved to the United States as a youngster to play collegiate hockey, but not before he played with the Djurgarden junior squad during the 1996-97 season.

The return home makes Murray the sixth Sharks player who is already back in Europe or soon plans to leave the United States because of the NHL lockout. The San Jose Mercury News reports that four of those players went to their home countries while the rest remain in the states, but the numbers of players practicing with one another in San Jose are dwindling.

The 6'3, 240 pound defenseman has spent all seven of his NHL seasons with San Jose after the team took him in the 1999 draft. He played in 60 games for the Sharks last year.

This story originally appeared on SBNation.com.