Dallas Stars sign Will Butcher to one-year contract
The Dallas Stars have signed defenseman Will Butcher to a one-year, two-way contract, the club announced Friday afternoon.
ESPN’s Kevin Weekes was the first to report the news of the deal, which carries an NHL cap hit of $750,000.
Butcher, 27, will be paid a $300,000 salary during his time in the American Hockey League. He’s guaranteed to receive at least $325,000 in total compensation during the 2022–23 regular season.
Welcome to #TexasHockey, Will!
We have signed defenseman Will Butcher to a one-year, two-way contract.
📰 MORE: https://t.co/BeQvT72ER7 pic.twitter.com/Pj7vOx53va
In 37 games with the Buffalo Sabres during the 2021–22 regular season, Butcher scored two goals and eight points while averaging 16:29 per night.
Originally selected by the Colorado Avalanche in the fifth round of the 2013 NHL Draft, Butcher signed with the New Jersey Devils as a free agent in 2017 and made his NHL debut with the team in the 2017–18 season.
The 5’10”, 191-pound left-handed defender scored 44 points in 81 games that year and was named to the NHL’s All-Rookie Team as the Devils clinched a surprise playoff berth.
Butcher struggled to find the same level of success with the Devils in subsequent seasons and was traded to the Sabres for future considerations last summer.
The Sun Prairie, Wisconsin product has scored 16 goals and 114 points while averaging 17:39 in 275 career regular-season games with New Jersey and Buffalo. He added one goal and four points in five playoff contests with the Devils in 2018.