The 28 year old, left shooting blueliner joins the club after spending all three professional season's with the Illinois based Quad City Mallards - one in the International Hockey League and the last two in the Central Hockey League, where he iced alongside former Rays agitator Jason Kostadine.
A former junior champion and top goalscoring and pointscoring defenceman in the United States Hockey League - where he spent three years with the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders between 2002 and 2005, lifting the Clark Cup in 04/05 - the Alaska native notched three goals, ten assists and just 22 penalty minutes in 59 games in the CHL last term.
After starting his junior career in the USHL, he returned to Alaska and his hometown of Anchorage in the summer of 2005 - icing in NCAA Div I while studying Management at the University of Alaska - Anchorage. Following four years in the NCAA, the 6ft blueliner ended his hometown stint with eight goals and 33 points in 110 games.
Additionally, Lovdahl also spent the summer of 2010 in the Australia Ice Hockey League with the Adelaide Adrenaline scoring 13 goals and 29 points in 25 games 'Down Under'.
Stingrays coach Sylvain Cloutier calls Lovdahl an "all-around defenceman", adding:
"Shane is a solid defenceman who is a competitor and works extremely hard. He had three great years in Quad City and put up some decent numbers for a defenceman. He is extremely good in his own zone, he battles, he competes every shift and that it what I was looking for."One thing Lovdahl admits he is not, is an out and out fighter - stating in a 2009 interview to the Quad City Times that "if it's for the team or sticking up for a guy then I'll fight" - having having dropped the gloves on only 16 occasions in more than 450 career game.
Nevertheless, just a couple of months after the interview it is perhaps worth noting he fought Muskegon Lumberjacks right wing John DiPace in a heat-of-the-moment bout:
Given his previous numbers it's highly unlikely Lovdahl - who has become the Rays fifth import signing of the summer - is being brought to the table to provide offence or, despite the above clip, toughness. Much more likely is that his constant and solid presence in his own defensive end will provide Stingrays rookie EIHL netminder Ben Bowns the kind of support that Christian Boucher was not afforded at times last season.
His addition appears to come very much in the mold of former defenceman Stephen Burns - who, himself, impressed during his cut-short season long stay in Hull during 09/10 after a similarly low scoring season in the CHL.
Burns - who, it is thought, came close to agreeing to a return to Hull last season - hit two goals, six assists and 94 penalty minutes in 55 games during his sole season in CHL at Rio Grande after four years in the NCAA and - on paper - Lovdahl compares very well with the former defenceman - who recorded four goals and 16 points in 62 games in the EIHL.
The confirmed departures of standout defencemen Dmitri Rodin and Sam McCluskey and all but confirmed departure of Martin Ondrej mean Lovdahl may be the first of a number of new defensive signings with only captain Kurtis Dulle rumoured to be returning.
Two former EIHL defencemen linked to the club in recent weeks are Jeff Smith and Tomas Valecko. Smith - a former ECHL and AHLer - spent last season in The Hague in Holland, a year after his time at the Coventry Blaze was cut short to just 11 games through injury, meanwhile Slovakian Valecko hit eight goals and 31 assists with the Edinburgh Capitals last season.
It is believed further announcements are imminent with Cloutier confirming to the Hull Daily Mail that he has already all but completed his squad for the 12/13 campaign.
