Ryan Carter seemed to know his days with the New Jersey Devils were numbered, but he went to the team’s training camp without a contract anyway. Instead of getting a deal from the team he’s been with for the last three seasons, Carter ended up accepting a one-year, two-way deal from the Minnesota Wild on Monday.
According to Michael Russo of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Carter is expected to be part of the NHL roster and will make $725,000.
More from Russo:
The Wild actually offered Carter a one-way contract, I'm told, but Carter chose the two-way for slightly more money because if it doesn't pan out here, he can be placed on waivers and potentially picked up by somebody. One other team wanted to sign Carter, and so did Jersey, but the Devils don't have the room.
Carter fills a need for the Wild on the fourth line, providing a physical and defensive element. The Wild were shorthanded due to the injury to Justin Fontaine, who was placed on injured reserve. Additionally, neither Cody Almond nor Stephane Veilleux managed to distinguish themselves in camp and were placed on waivers.
On top of the role that Carter can fill, he brings 360 games of NHL experience and has 43 playoff games under his belt as well. He was part of the Anaheim Ducks team that won the Stanley Cup in 2007 and was part of the Devils’ run to the Stanley Cup final in 2012. Carter actually had five goals and seven points during the Devils’ postseason march.
Additionally, Carter is a native of White Bear Lake, Minn., and Wild fans sure love their local boys.
Though he can fill some gaps, Carter doesn’t provide much offense and at age 31, appears to be on down side of his career. The Wild are already pretty deep at forward and should have enough scoring help where a guy like Carter can just plug a bottom-of-the-lineup hole and give a few quality shifts per game.
Last season with the Devils, Carter appeared in 62 games. He had 10 points, including seven goals, while averaging 11:20 per game.
