Columbus Blue Jackets Sign Michael Prapavessis to Two Year ELC
The Columbus Blue Jackets and Michael Prapavessis have agreed to terms following the defenseman’s stellar camp.
Another busy day for the Columbus Blue Jackets front office. While navigating a dinged up blue line and determining the final few spots on the roster the team signed veteran Mark Letestu and stand out free agent invitee Machael Prapavessis.
The former Dallas Stars 4th round pick agreed to a two year entry level contract. Not bad for a kid that was tossed aside by the Stars and was a free agent invite just a month ago.
Prapavessis has been with the team since the Traverse City Tournament where he impressed, posting a +5 rating. The former RPI captain was a standout on the blue line and was one of the final cuts from preseason camp.
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Prap played in three preseason games with the club including the most recent game in Clinton, NY for Kraft Hockeyville. Prap added two assist to his preseason total in that game agains the Sabres.
The 22 year old undrafted right shot played 11 games in the ECHL following the conclusion of his NCAA career last season. The games in Ohio caught the attention of the Jackets and earned him an invite to camp that Prap made the most of.
With a deal in place Prapavessis will head to Cleveland and be a big part of a defense that looks to rebound in a big way. Last season the dreadful Monsters gave up the third most goals in the AHL. The team has a ton of options on defense, including some players that will start the year in Columbus but will likely end up in Cleveland.
Being a regular top six defenseman in the AHL will be a challenge for Prap but he showed a ton of potential in training camp and this is a no-brainer contract.
According to CapFriendly.com, the Letestu and Prap contracts give the Jackets a total of 49 deals on the books. That leaves the Jackets with only one open contract spot in the organization.
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Look for the team then to try an unload one of its many fringe forward contracts sometime early in the season to give the team more flexibility as it tackles the Sergei Bobrovsky and Artemi Panarin situations.