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Carter Hutton

Carter Hutton Retires From NHL

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A journeyman netminder has hung up his skates today. Veteran Carter Hutton announced his retirement from the NHL today, talking with Tom Annelin of the Chronicle Journal.

Speaking with Annelin today, Hutton had the following to say on his decision:

Honestly, I’ve been preparing myself for hockey to be over in some aspect for a while… The NHL has evolved into a young man’s league. The average age is now in the early 20s, so I know that this job wouldn’t be a lifelong one for me. Ultimately, I suffered an ankle injury in early 2021, which made the decision a lot easier for me. It restricted a lot of the mobility I needed to be as effective as I once was. This, compiled with a few other things helped me decide on retirement.

The news isn’t surprising in any aspect. Hutton appeared in just three games at the beginning of the season with the Arizona Coyotes, earning a 0-2-0 record and .741 save percentage. He spent the majority of the rest of the season injured before he was dealt to the Toronto Maple Leafs ahead of the trade deadline for injury insurance there, but the team loaned him back to the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners. He did spend a few days at Leafs practice, however.

An undrafted free agent, Hutton had a long and arduous path to NHL success. Hutton spent four years developing at the University of Massachusetts-Lowell before signing an entry-level contract with the San Jose Sharks for 2010-11. Hutton was the backup for the AHL affiliate in Worcester that season, posting a .902 save percentage. A restricted free agent, he was left unqualified and settled for an AHL contract with the Rockford IceHogs in 2011-12.

Strong play there got him an NHL contract later in the season and again with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2012-13, when he made his NHL debut at age 27. As an unrestricted free agent in 2013, the Nashville Predators snapped up Hutton in free agency, where he broke into the NHL and never looked back. After stops with the Predators, St. Louis Blues, Buffalo Sabres, and Coyotes, Hutton retires with a career 94-90-27 record in 235 games played (207 starts), .908 save percentage, and 2.76 goals-against average, and 13 shutouts. For an undrafted free agent who wasn’t a full-time NHLer until 28, it’s an improbable and impressive resumé.

Toronto Maple Leafs Acquire Carter Hutton

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7:47 pm: PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan reports that the Maple Leafs are expected to loan Hutton back to the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners for the time being. Considering the Leafs’ considerable depth at the position in the AHL, the move is such as to not separate Hutton from his family. In the unlikely event he’s needed, he can still be recalled to Toronto.

6:38 pm: Goalie Carter Hutton is on the move from the Arizona Coyotes to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for future considerations, per the team. Hutton had cleared waivers today, meaning that he can be assigned directly to the AHL.

This is the second trade between the two teams within a matter of days. The Maple Leafs acquired Ilya Lyubushkin and Ryan Dzingel from Arizona in exchange for Nick Ritchie and a conditional draft pick, only to lose Dzingel on waivers today to the San Jose Sharks.

Hutton, now 36, played just three games for the Coyotes this season before going down with a lower-body injury. Healthy now, he’ll in all likelihood report to the Toronto Marlies, providing the organization with some additional goalie depth.

Hutton had an eye-popping .741 save percentage and 7.83 goals-against average in those three games with the Coyotes. With youngster Karel Vejmelka and mid-season acquisition Scott Wedgewood holding the fort admirably behind a weak Arizona team, Hutton’s place within the organization had faded away.

The acquisition is somewhat confusing, considering Toronto already has Michael Hutchinson, Erik Källgren, Joseph Woll, and Ian Scott in the minors.

Clark Bishop, Carter Hutton Clear Waivers

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Feb 21: While Dzingel was claimed by the San Jose Sharks, both Bishop and Hutton have cleared waivers and can be assigned to the minor leagues.

Feb 20: TSN’s Chris Johnston reports that Toronto Maple Leafs forward Ryan Dzingel, Ottawa Senators forward Clark Bishop, and Arizona Coyotes goaltender Carter Hutton were all placed on waivers today.

Dzingel’s placement is certainly somewhat unexpected, considering the team acquired him last night via trade from the Arizona Coyotes. However, as a casualty of the salary cap, the team was forced to send Rasmus Sandin down to the minors as a paper transaction today. In order for the team to keep both skilled young defensemen Sandin and Timothy Liljegren in the NHL, the team needed to clear additional salary. Dzingel’s cap hit of $1.1M is fully buriable in the AHL.

Bishop is a 25-year-old who’s seen a lot of time up and down between the NHL and AHL over the past few seasons. He’s gotten into nine games with Ottawa this year, but has averaged just 8:21 of ice time per game and has notched one assist.

With Hutton on waivers today, it’s an indication that the veteran goalie is finally healthy. Hutton suffered a lower-body injury just weeks into the season and has been out of the lineup for nearly four months. Seeing as Karel Vejmelka and Scott Wedgewood have both decisively outperformed Hutton’s early-season numbers, it’s the logical choice here for the Coyotes.

Central Notes: Khudobin, Wild, Coyotes Goaltending

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Earlier this season, Dallas was shopping goaltender Anton Khudobin and after they found no takers, they waived him and sent him to AHL Texas to try to get him back to his form from previous seasons.  Now, while they could certainly benefit from shedding his $3.33MM cap hit that runs through 2022-23, GM Jim Nill indicated in an interview with Mike Heika of the Stars’ team site that they may elect to hold onto the netminder as injury insurance.  If the Stars were willing to take a similarly-priced player back in a swap of bad contracts, it’s quite possible that they’d have been able to find a taker.  Now, it appears that the 35-year-old will stick around and be a high-priced insurance policy in the minors.

More from the Central Division:

  • Wild winger Marcus Foligno is expected to return to Minnesota’s lineup on Tuesday against Winnipeg, notes Michael Russo of The Athletic (Twitter link). The 30-year-old has missed the last two games with an upper-body injury, his first real blemish on an impressive season that has already seen him reach a career high in points with 27 in 39 games.  Meanwhile, Russo adds in a separate tweet that the team is hopeful that defenseman Mathew Dumba will be able to play on Saturday after being placed on IR earlier today.
  • Coyotes goaltender Scott Wedgewood was injured in practice today and did not accompany the team on their road trip to Vancouver, relays Craig Morgan of PHNX Sports (Twitter link). The veteran has done relatively well since joining Arizona, posting a .903 SV% in 18 games after being claimed on waivers early in the season.  Ivan Prosvetov will be recalled from AHL Tucson with Carter Hutton not quite ready to return although he did skate before practice.

West Notes: Canucks, Coyotes Injuries, Ducks

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Canucks owner Francesco Aquilini and interim GM Stan Smyl held a press conference today following the sweeping changes that were made late Sunday.  Aquilini told reporters, including Thomas Drance of The Athletic (Twitter link) that there is no timeline to try to find a replacement and that they will conduct “a thorough and exhaustive search” to find the right candidate.  It’s a similar line to what Chicago and Anaheim have used following their vacancies being created and it would suggest that Vancouver may wait until the offseason when they’re able to speak to candidates currently employed with other teams.

Meanwhile, earlier today, Ryan Kennedy of The Hockey News reported (Twitter link) that former Montreal GM Marc Bergevin is someone the Canucks are very interested in.  When asked about that, Aquilini acknowledged (via Drance) that he hasn’t approached Bergevin about whether or not he’d be interested in the position.

More from the Western Conference:

  • The Coyotes should be getting some help on the injury front soon. PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan reports (Twitter link) that centers Nick Schmaltz (upper body) and Jay Beagle (lower body) could return from their respective injuries this weekend while center Johan Larsson (lower body) is a couple of weeks away after being re-injured on Friday.  Meanwhile, goaltender Carter Hutton has cleared COVID protocol but isn’t yet fully recovered from his ankle injury; with Karel Vejmelka and Scott Wedgewood providing decent goaltending in his absence, they’re in a spot where they can afford to be cautious in bringing him back.
  • Ducks centers Adam Henrique and Ryan Getzlaf could rejoin the team at some point on their five-game road trip, relays Elliott Teaford of the Orange County Register. The veterans are having strong bounce-back seasons; Henrique is only five points shy of his total from 2020-21 while Getzlaf has already surpassed his total from last season and sits second in team scoring.  Both are dealing with lower-body injuries.

Carter Hutton Placed In COVID Protocol

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The Arizona Coyotes have placed Carter Hutton in the COVID protocol, despite him not even being on the active roster. The injured netminder was nearing a return, but now it appears the decision on which goaltenders to carry with the team won’t have to be made for a little while longer.

Hutton joins Andrew Ladd and Johan Larsson in the protocol, but the team did not confirm whether or not he had tested positive for coronavirus. If he did and is experiencing any symptoms, the netminder will be held out a minimum of ten days.

Without him, the team will continue to go with Karel Vejmelka and Scott Wedgewood, a pair that has actually been relatively good for the team so far. In fact, Wedgewood has a .940 save percentage in his six appearances, winning three times. While Vejmelka has a .905, quite a bit better than Hutton’s early-season showing, he still amazingly has a 1-9-1 record on the year.

The Coyotes will take on the Edmonton Oilers this evening, looking for their first three-game winning streak of the season.

Conor Timmins, Carter Hutton Out Several Weeks

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Nov 3: Morgan updates the Timmins situation, reporting that the young defenseman will be out the rest of the season.  It’s brutal news for not only the Coyotes season but also his future in the NHL. The 23-year-old will now have just played just 85 hockey games between the end of the 2017-18 season and the start of the 2022-23 season.

Oct 26: The Arizona Coyotes will be without their “starting” goaltender and a top young defenseman for the next several weeks, after Carter Hutton and Conor Timmins suffered injuries last night. According to Craig Morgan of PHNX Sports, Hutton is expected to miss between two to four weeks, while Timmins could miss eight to 12 weeks after both sustained lower-body injuries. There was no update on Ryan Dzingel, who also left last night’s game.

It’s not like this has any drastic effect on the team’s performance, given the Coyotes are obviously set up for a losing season and haven’t even registered a single win to this point. But the development of Timmins–who was acquired in the Darcy Kuemper trade this summer–is certainly something to consider. The former Colorado Avalanche defenseman has already missed huge chunks of time due to concussion issues and has just 88 professional games under his belt to this point (NHL and AHL combined). Now 23, he’s already missed so much of his key development years that it’s hard to know whether he’ll ever become the player that starred for the Soo Greyhounds and Team Canada, leading to a selection 32nd overall in 2017.

Eight weeks would put a potential return for Timmins just before Christmas, while 12 would be the middle of January.

Hutton meanwhile was ticketed to carry the lion’s share of the goaltending load this season, though that certainly hasn’t gone well to this point. In three appearances he has a .741 save percentage, allowing 15 goals on 58 shots. Karel Vejmelka, a European free agent signing with no North American experience prior to this season will now likely be pushed into a full-time starter role. The 25-year-old has appeared in five games, posting an .899 save percentage.

Josef Korenar seems the most likely recall to give the team a second goaltender, though there are a few options in the Coyotes system.

Coyotes Lose Carter Hutton To Injury

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Expectations are low if not non-existent for the Arizona Coyotes this season. After starting 0-4-1 with a league-worst -17 goal differential, the only expectation for the ’Yotes could be a last place finish. This should not come as surprise either; Arizona’s entire off-season was about off-loading talent, using their salary cap space, adding draft picks and prospects, and not committing to any long-term free agent deals. More than half of the current roster will be unrestricted free agents next summer as the team is fully committed to just to a rebuild but to a complete overhaul.

After dealing away both Darcy Kuemper and Adin Hill and letting Antti Raanta walk, the Coyotes started fresh in net this season. While 25-year-old Czech import Karel Vejmelka has drawn the headlines after winning a roster spot and earning more time and better numbers thus far, it is veteran Carter Hutton who was tapped as the new starter albeit on a one-year deal. While the Yotes’ plan is clearly not to contend in any manner this season, if they don’t want to completely isolate their fan base then they need to at least stay competitive and Hutton gives them that chance – despite some abysmal numbers early on this season.

Well, Hutton may now be unavailable. Hutton suffered a lower-body injury on Monday night and was forced from the game after the first period, the team announced. No further update has been revealed, but any extended absence would be a tough blow for the Coyotes, even though it contributes to their primary goal of contending for a top pick this year. The Coyotes are giving up a lot of shots early this season and it is not an environment in which a young goalie is likely to thrive. Yet, behind Vejmelka would be either 23-year-old Josef Korenar, who struggled in ten games with the San Jose Sharks last season, and 22-year-old Ivan Prosvetov, who took his lumps in three games with the ’Yotes last year. Things could get even uglier in the desert if Hutton is out long-term, so hopefully the injury is not serious.

The Coyotes also lost young defenseman Conor Timmins to injury in the same game, one of the few players on the roster that Arizona really wanted and needed to play a major role this season as a potential future top-four blue liner. Free agent addition Ryan Dzingel was also ruled out with an injury in the game. Things are not going well in Arizona right now.

Carter Hutton Signs With Arizona Coyotes

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The Arizona Coyotes have signed goaltender Carter Hutton to a one-year, $750K contract according to Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff. With Darcy Kuemper, Adin Hill, and Antti Raanta both gone, the Coyotes needed a goaltender with some NHL experience.

As it stands now, Hutton looks like the starter in the desert for next season unless another addition is made. This is very likely, but still a testament to the trust that the team has in him if no other moves pan out. Hutton, 35, had some hard times in Buffalo over the past three years. However, it was just before then that Hutton delivered an all-time NHL season, leading the league with a .931 save percentage and 2.09 GAA for the St. Louis Blues in 2017-18. Hutton may not be at the top of his game any more, but very well might have more in him than he was able to show in Buffalo over the past few years. The Coyotes look no better than the Sabres right now, but the system may be different enough that the veteran can benefit from a change of scenery.

However, Hutton’s best chance at success in Phoenix will be if the ’Yotes add another netminder. Hutton’s top seasons of his NHL career have all been when he played under 40 games. With only untested Josef Korenar as another NHL option in net right now, that is not happening. The aging goalie needs someone to take at least half of the starts off his hands or the likelihood that he can stay fresh enough to excel seems slim.

Injury Updates: Panthers, Avalanche, Sabres Goalies, Watson

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The Panthers are in a battle for first place in the Central Division but will be without a few regulars for a little while.  The team announced (Twitter link) that goalie Chris Driedger has been ruled out for the rest of the road trip which takes him out for the next three games though he isn’t expected to be out much longer than that.  Winger Patric Hornqvist is listed as day-to-day with an upper-body injury.

Meanwhile, winger Carter Verhaeghe isn’t expected to play on the trip either, notes David Wilson of the Miami Herald.  As a result, Florida entered tonight’s game down two of their top four scorers plus their top netminder statistically.  Between that and Carolina holding two games in hand, the Panthers will have their work cut out for them if they want to secure that top seed.

Other injury notes from around the NHL:

  • Avalanche defenseman Bowen Byram and winger Logan O’Connor have both suffered setbacks in their recoveries from upper- and lower-body injuries respectively, reports Mike Chambers of the Denver Post (Twitter link). Byram was recently taken off the COVID-Protocol Related Absences (CPRA) List but his injury preceded his placement there.  As for O’Connor, he has been out since the end of March.  Both players are now listed as week-to-week.
  • On the other hand, Colorado is set to get several key regulars back as com’s Rick Sadowski mentions that wingers Mikko Rantanen and Joonas Donskoi plus goalie Philipp Grubauer could all return to the lineup on Friday. Those three were on the CPRA list until recently as well and would undoubtedly provide a boost to the Avalanche’s lineup as they look to chase down Vegas for the top seed in the West.
  • The Sabres are unlikely to have goaltenders Linus Ullmark or Carter Hutton return this season, reports Mike Harrington of The Buffalo News. Ullmark has not yet resumed skating after suffering a lower-body injury two weeks ago while interim head coach Don Granato noted that Hutton recently had a setback after resuming skating as he worked his way back from a leg issue.  That means that Dustin Tokarski and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen will likely remain Buffalo’s tandem for the rest of the year.
  • The Senators have ruled out a return for winger Austin Watson this season, relays Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch (Twitter link). Watson suffered a wrist injury back in late March, one that carried a four-to-six week recovery time and it appears it will be the latter with him not returning.  He wraps up his first year with Ottawa with 10 points, 40 penalty minutes, and 100 hits in 34 games.
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