The Pittsburgh Penguins have re-signed center Brandon Sutter. The 25-year-old from Red Deer, Alberta agreed to a two-year, $6.6 million contract.
Sutter had an up-and-down 2013-14 season. He had a mediocre regular season, posting only 13 goals and 13 assists in 81 games. His .32 points per game was his lowest since his rookie season with Carolina in 2008-09. He rebounded to score 5 goals and 2 assists in the Penguins’ 13 playoff games.
He is projected to again center the Penguins’ third line, the improvement of which was a point of emphasis this offseason under new General Manager Jim Rutherford. Newly acquired wingers Nick Spaling, Blake Comeau, and Steve Downie may contribute to improving the line’s play along with Sutter’s numbers season.
The contract’s annual value of $3.3 million leaves the Penguins with less than a million dollars in cap space and makes any other signings unlikely. Sutter will be eligible to be an unrestricted free agent when the contract expires after the 2015-16 season. He was the last of the team’s restricted free agents to sign a contract for this season.
Sutter was acquired in a draft-day trade with Carolina in 2012, along with Brian Dumoulin and a first round draft pick for Jordan Staal. Current Penguins General Manager Jim Rutherford was the GM of Carolina when they drafted Sutter in the first round of the 2007 draft.
(Photo Credit: Vincent Pugliese/Getty Images)
