Minnesota Wild re-sign defenseman Clayton Stoner to two-year, $2.1 million deal -NHL Update
Minnesota Wild crossed off Clayton Stoner’s name off the list of players set to become unrestricted free agents by the start of July in 2012 as the club announced that they signed the defenseman to a two-year, $2.1 million deal on Thursday, May 10.
The new deal is a huge boost compared to his previous two-year contract which had an annually salary cap hit of $550,000, which will definitely have the player working towards securing even a better deal after it.
It was just a month back that Minnesota Wild head coach, Mike Yeo, announced his desires of having the player back on the line-up and assured that he would not let him test the free market agency. The 27-year-old did face some minor injuries throughout his
career so far, but has been able to bounce back and help his team in the long run.
"We would love to see him in the line-up, and durability is important when you're trying to make those decisions, but this is a character guy," Yeo said about signing Clayton Stoner. "This is a guy that plays for his teammates and is effective when he's
on the ice. We'd like to get more games from him, but he's a valuable piece."
Drafted as the 79th overall pick by the Minnesota Wild in round-three of the 2004 National Hockey League (NHL) Entry Draft, the Port Mcneill, British Columbia, Canada native, has shown much potential in the major league thus afar.
He has played three straight seasons with the Minnesota Wild as of yet, with the first being mainly with their minor league affiliate in the American Hockey League (AHL), the Houston Aeros.
He played in 51 games last season and put up five points (1 goal, 4 assists) with a plus rating of three, the only Minnesota with a rating in the positive.
As Minnesota Wild continues working towards improving the club in every aspect as they were ousted of the playoffs this year, having hard working players like Clayton Stoner, they can be assured of having a much better hockey season next time around.
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