Devils sign Hobey Baker Award winner Will Butcher
By Kevin Rakas
The New Jersey Devils have signed Hobey Baker winner Will Buther to a two-year contract.
The New Jersey Devils won the Will Butcher sweepstakes, signing the 2016-17 Hobey Baker winner to a two-year entry level contract worth a reported $925,000 per season. The Avalanche originally drafted Butcher in the fifth round of the 2013 Draft, but the defenseman declined to sign with Colorado in the four-year window, making him an unrestricted free agent.
New Jersey was among at least five teams bidding for the former University of Denver standout. The Los Angeles Kings, Buffalo Sabres, Columbus Blue Jackets and expansion Vegas Golden Knights also sought Butcher’s services.
Butcher sent out a tweet saying he was honored and humbled to be a part of the Devils and thanked all the teams who were involved in the process to bring him to the NHL.
Honored & humbled to be apart of the @NJDevils, would like to thank all teams involved in the process. The @NHL community is truly the best
— Will Butcher (@WillButcher4) August 27, 2017
Butcher tallied 7 goals and 30 assists for 37 points in 43 games, captaining the Pioneers to the 2016-17 NCAA Championship. In four years, he amassed 28 goals, 75 assists and 103 points in 158 games.
In addition to the Hobey Baker Award, Butcher won Player of the Year, First-Team All-Star and Offensive Defenseman of the Year in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference.
“His instincts are high end and his ability to find people wide open or get pucks through from the point are what make him special,” University of Denver coach Jim Montgomery told NJ Advance Media early this month.
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Butcher will bring a much-needed puck-mover and scorer on New Jersey’s back line. The Devils lost Jon Merrill to the Golden Knights in the expansion draft and desperately need a partner for 35-year-old captain Andy Greene on the top pairing.
The newcomer will also improve the squad defensively. Although Damon Severson (a team-high 31 points) and John Moore (12 goals and 22 points) set career highs in points, they both struggled in their own zone.
Butcher will also compete for ice time with sophomore Steven Santini and Mirco Mueller, who was acquired in a trade with the Sharks in June.