3:40 PM: The team has officially announced the extension for Hutton.
2:25 PM: The Golden Knights added some defensive depth back in late October with the signing of Ben Hutton to a one-year, one-way contract worth the league minimum of $750K. It appears that Vegas likes what they’ve seen as Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports (Twitter link) that the team is expected to sign Hutton to an extension at some point today. Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch reports (Twitter link) it’s a two-year deal worth $800K next season and $900K in 2023-24, meaning his cap hit will be $850K.
The 28-year-old has wound up playing close to a regular role since joining them, suiting up in 35 games this season, collecting nine points while averaging just under 15 minutes a game. That ATOI is well below his career average (19:22) but it’s a reflection of how strong their defensive core is. Hutton has 414 career NHL appearances under his belt with five different teams and collected his 100th career point last night with a goal against Anaheim.
While Hutton could have opted to test free agency next summer, that didn’t go well a year ago which resulted in him signing a PTO deal with San Diego of the AHL (Anaheim’s affiliate) before joining the Golden Knights a few weeks later. Now, he’s rewarded for his efforts with a bit of job security and a small raise, a nice piece of business for both sides.
This guy is a gem at the 5/6 and Vegas is fortunate to have him.
Agreed. Nice to some him with some job security now considering how many times he had to sign a PTO with and how many teams he’s jumped around to since leaving Vancouver.