It turns out Alexander Kerfoot wasn’t the only pending UFA from Utah to get an extension on Wednesday. Not long after announcing Kerfoot’s deal, the team announced that they’ve inked blueliner Ian Cole to a one-year extension. Financial terms were not disclosed but Chris Johnston of TSN and The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that the deal carries a base salary of $2.8MM and games-played bonuses of $200K, bringing the AAV to $3MM. GM Bill Armstrong released the following statement:
We are thrilled to have Ian back for another season. Ian’s championship pedigree, work ethic and leadership on and off the ice are valuable assets to our group, and we’re thrilled to have him remain with our organization as we fight for a playoff spot.
The 36-year-old has been somewhat of a hockey nomad in recent years, spending time with six different organizations over the last five seasons alone. During that time, Cole was never with a team for more than one season. That’s now set to change with this extension.
Cole signed a one-year, $3.1MM deal with Utah last summer meaning, like Kerfoot, he’s taking a small dip in pay to stick around. After starting to ease into more of a lower spot on the depth chart in recent years, that hasn’t been the case this season. With Utah’s back end being banged up for a good chunk of the year, Cole is averaging over 20 minutes a game of playing time for the first time in his career.
Through 61 games this season, Cole has a goal and 12 assists along with 160 blocked shots, a mark that leads the team by a considerable margin; Mikhail Sergachev sits second on the squad with 108. That stat line lines up quite closely with his entire 15-year NHL career as Cole generally carries a point total in the teens while being among the leaders in blocks no matter where he plays. That type of consistency and defensive reliability has always made him a popular target for teams and now he’ll get a bit of stability by getting to remain with Utah for another year.
Between this signing and the recent extension given to Olli Maatta, Utah’s top six defensemen are all under contract through at least next season, giving them a solid base with which to try to build from this offseason. With very few free agents remaining – Karel Vejmelka and Nick Bjugstad are the headliners – Utah is in strong shape in terms of building some continuity on their roster while still having plenty of financial flexibility to try to add to its core group.
Cole and Bonino were the glue of our 16 and 17 teams.
Cole was atrocious in last year’s playoffs. To the point I couldn’t wait to see him on the ice for VAN. Didn’t hurt my feelings! Surprised he gets 3MM AAV.