Toronto Maple Leafs sign forward Joey Crabb to one-year, one-way contract –NHL offseason Update
28-year-old right winger and unrestricted free agent, Joey Crabb, inked a one-year, two-way contract with Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday, July 19, which was the second transaction of the day by the struggling Canadian club.
The 2011 National Hockey League (NHL) free agency is certainly drying up, which has led teams to re-signing the final remaining players which can fit under their salary cap restrictions.
Crabb is estimated to make $750,000 if he plays in the major league and $105,000 if he participates with Toronto’s minor league affiliates in the American Hockey League (AHL), Toronto Marlies, but the official financial terms and conditions of the contract
were not disclosed.
It might be a tough job for Crabb if he wants to make it into the roster when the new season begins, but according to him, he’s happy wherever the team puts him.
“I’ve never been the kind of guy who goes on line and tries to dissect the roster”, Crabb said from his off-season home in Anchorage, Alaska. “I’ve been around for a while, so I’ll just go into camp with a good focus”.
Native of Anchorage, Alaska, United States, Joey Crabb, was drafted as the 226th overall pick during round-seven of the 2002 NHL Entry Draft by New York Rangers.
Crabb never played with his original draft team and was instead dealt to Atlanta Thrashers.
Atlanta sent the young forward to play with their AHL affiliate, Chicago Wolves, for two seasons until finally giving him a chance during the 2008-2009 season, in which he appeared in 29 games and recorded nine points (4 goals, 5 assists).
Crabb continued to play with Wolves up until the end of the 2009-2010 season and was signed on by Toronto and played a career high of 48 games and scored 15 points (3 goals, 12 assists), while finishing up with a plus-minus rating of -1.
Having played only 77 major league games so far, Joey Crabb still has a lot to gain throughout his career.
The next season will certainly be an opportunity for him to participate more in the NHL and become more stable as a player.
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