The Tampa Bay Lightning have re-signed defenseman Daniel Walcott to a one-year, two-way contract. Walcott is still waiting to make his NHL debut, but has been a big part of the Syracuse Crunch defense corps for the last few seasons. Scheduled to become a restricted free agent this summer, he’ll now stick with the organization through the 2018-19 season, after which he likely will qualify for Group VI free agent status.
Walcott, 24, was originally drafted by the New York Rangers but traded for a seventh-round pick in 2015. The Lightning quickly inserted him into their minor league system, where he was given the “A” as an alternate captain for the Crunch this season. Despite his relatively small stature, the 5’11” Walcott isn’t really an offensive player and instead relies on good defensive zone positioning and a crisp first pass out of the zone. He recorded a career-high 16 points this season, while helping the Crunch to their 46-22-8 record.
Since he’ll be 25 at the conclusion of next season, Walcott will be eligible for Group VI unrestricted free agency should he fail to play in 80 games with the Lightning. That is almost an impossibility while part of the Tampa Bay organization, meaning he’s headed for the open market a year from now. Whether he’ll stay in the system or try to find a role on another team won’t be decided for some time, as for now he’s headed back to Syracuse to try and win the Calder Cup in 2018-19.