Per PuckPedia, the Pittsburgh Penguins have signed UFA defenseman Will Butcher to a one-year, two-way deal. He’ll earn $775K in the NHL and $425K in the minors.
After five seasons in the NHL with the New Jersey Devils and Buffalo Sabres, Butcher found himself limited to an AHL-only role last season after signing a one-year deal with the Dallas Stars. He did well enough in his first AHL season, posting 43 points in 65 games with the Texas Stars, along with a +11 rating.
The contract marks a slight raise for Butcher, who only earned his $325K guaranteed salary on last season’s two-way deal. Butcher, 28, does have 275 NHL games to his name, including a 44-point rookie season with the Devils in 2017-18. He’s yet to hit a level of play anywhere close to what he displayed that year, however.
With a logjam of younger defensemen that includes Pierre-Olivier Joseph and Ty Smith, Butcher isn’t a candidate to make the Penguins out of camp. He is, however, one of the more capable call-up options in the league if injuries strike the Pittsburgh blueline.
The left-shot American will be an unrestricted free agent again in a year’s time.
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