With Chicago’s goalie depth being tested with both Marc-Andre Fleury and Kevin Lankinen now in protocol, the Blackhawks have converted Cale Morris to an NHL contract, inking him to a one-year, two-way deal, reports Charlie Roumeliotis of NBC Sports Chicago (Twitter link). The deal is worth the league minimum of $750K in the NHL.
The 25-year-old was a dominant goaltender at the NCAA level, posting a 2.18 GAA with a .931 SV% and 11 shutouts in four seasons with Notre Dame, earning Player of the Year honors back in 2017-18. Accordingly, he was a player many expected to land an NHL contract when his college career came to an end but instead, he had to settle for a minor league deal.
This season, Morris has spent most of the season in the ECHL, collecting a 2.82 GAA with a save percentage of .898 in 14 games with Indy while also making his first two career appearances at the AHL level with Rockford. He’ll serve as Chicago’s third-string option as he has been assigned to their taxi squad; Collin Delia and Arvid Soderblom, who was recalled from the taxi squad today, will serve as their tandem for their game against Nashville tomorrow.