Chicago Blackhawks assign goaltender Cristobal Huet to Swiss team
Chigago Blackhawks netminder Cristobal Huet is on his way out of the Windy City, but he won’t be assigned to the team’s minor league affiliate.
Instead, the 35-year-old native of Saint-Martin-d'Hères, France, will be jetting off to Switzerland to play for HC Fribourg-Gotteron SA, a team in the Swiss National League A.
Huet had previously signed a for-year contract with the Blackhawks that was valued at $22.45 million in July of 2008. He began last season as Chicago’s starting goaltender, but later lost his job to rookie
Antti Niemi, one of the heroes of the team’s Stanley Cup run. Niemi has since signed on to play for the San Jose Sharks.
Although Huet will now be playing in Switzerland, the Blackhawks are still responsible for paying out his salary, which comes out to $5.6 million per year. But because Huet is no longer in the NHL, his
hefty salary will not count against the team’s salary cap, which will free up some cap room. This will be vital if Blackhawks general manager Stan Bowman decides to sign an additional player.
Last season, Huet played in 48 games for the Blackhawks. He compiled a 26-14-4 record, along with a 2.50 goals-against average and a .895 save percentage. In 272 career
games in the National Hockey League, Huet has a record of 129-90-11-21 with a 2.46 GAA and a save percentage of .913.
The departure of both of their goalies prompted Bowman to reach out for veteran Marty Turco during the off-season. Turco, who had spent his entire career with the Dallas Stars, was signed to a one-year
contract that was reported to have been worth in the vicinity of $1-1.5 million.
The Blackhawks, who are currently the defending Stanley Cup champions, are hoping to defend their title this season. But with several key players from the Cup-winning team now gone, it remains to be seen
whether or not they will replicate the feat.
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