The Tampa Bay Lightning announced an extension for one of their minor league veterans last night, inking Daniel Walcott to a new two-year contract. The two-way deal will cover the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons and keep Walcott from becoming an unrestricted free agent later this summer.
Now 27, Walcott was originally selected in the fifth round of the 2014 draft as a defenseman but has played mostly forward of late during his minor league career. With the Syracuse Crunch since 2015, he now wears an “A” as an alternate captain. He never has played in the NHL and if he does, it will likely come as a fourth-line injury replacement.
Still, the Crunch have always valued the leadership that AHL veterans bring and Walcott has now been rewarded with a nice two-year contract. The financial details of the contract were not included in the press release, but his cap hit will almost assuredly stay buried anyway.