After working his way up from the low minors to earn an NHL contract last season, Hayden Hodgson has cashed in again. The Philadelphia Flyers have signed Hodgson to a two-year contract that will carry an average annual value of $800K in the NHL. The deal is two-way in 2022-23, meaning he will earn a lower number when playing in the AHL, and one-way in 2023-24.
If you want a story of perseverance, look no further than the 26-year-old Hodgson, who was a third-round pick in his OHL draft, went undrafted by NHL teams, and spent parts of four seasons in the ECHL before becoming an AHL regular in 2021-22.
Because of his outstanding play for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, he earned an NHL contract in March and played six games with the Flyers down the stretch, scoring three points and racking up 11 penalty minutes.
The 6’2″ winger blends skill, work ethic, and physicality to provide a pretty interesting late-blooming package, one that has a chance to play more regular minutes with the Flyers this season.
Landing a one-way contract is no joke for a player who had bounced around the ECHL up until a year ago, playing for the Florida Everblades, Manchester Monarchs, Wichita Thunder, Reading Royals, Wheeling Nailers, and Utah Grizzlies (not to mention Detva HC of the Slovak league) between stints in the AHL.
It also takes care of the last remaining RFA for the Flyers, who signed Wade Allison and Linus Hogberg yesterday.
MY GUY
@DarkSide830 – Your Hedgehog is back! Now, they need to turn him into an annoying (to the opposition) net-front presence.