The Columbus Blue Jackets lock up the young Swiss defenseman for two more seasons.
As first reported by watson.ch and later announced by the Columbus Blue Jackets, Dean Kukan has agreed to an two year contract extension. The 24-year-old was an AHL All-Star selection this season and played 10 games with the NHL team.
The Columbus Blue Jackets faced a rough stretch where they lost three defenseman to injuries at one time and need to make a call up from Cleveland. Kukan earned the trip up to Columbus and played well in his 10 outings.
Kukan had four assist in ten games including his first NHL point against the Minnesota Wild on January 30th. He had 57.8% corsi for rating and was averaging just over 11 minutes of ice time per game. Not bad for a guy in his first serious stint in the NHL.
Unfortunately, Kukan suffered an injury on February 18th agains the Pittsburgh Penguins. He has been on injured reserve since then. The upper body injury was supposed to keep him out four weeks.
INJURY UPDATE: #CBJ D Dean Kukan is expected to miss four weeks with an upper body injury suffered in Sunday’s game vs. Pittsburgh.
— CBJ Public Relations (@BlueJacketsPR) February 20, 2018
With the D-corps playing as well as they have lately and the return of Markus Nutivaara it is going to be tough for Kukan to get back on the ice. The defensive depth though is vital for the team in the push for the playoffs as this team has not been strangers to injured defenseman this season.
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One-Way Contract
This two year, $725,000 a year deal is that it is a one-way contract. That means Kukan will be paid that amount whether or not he is with the Columbus Blue Jackets or not. The play of Kukan this year leads me to believe he will be with the Jackets for the foreseeable future. He is waiver exempt until he hits 70 NHL games. Kukan has currently played in 18.
This makes things crowded on the blue line. The Jackets have Zach Werenski, Seth Jones, David Savard and Scott Harrington under contract next season. Plus they have Markus Nutivaara and Ryan Murray as restricted free agents. They will likely sign them soon as well. That’s seven NHL defenseman the Jackets have on the roster going into the 2018-2019 season.
Plenty of options for the Jackets with the emergence and contract given to Dean Kukan. He will soon return from injury and hopefully help push the Jackets towards the playoffs.