One-way deal no guarantee of NHL duty for Hathaway
Undrafted, unheralded and yet undeterred, this is a look-how-faryou’ve-come landmark for Calgary Flames crash-and-bang sort Garnet Hathaway.
For the first time in his career, the right-winger scribbled his name on a one-way contract.
“Other than a one-way AHL deal, which is how I started,” Hathaway clarified. “You would see other guys with those contracts, and it’s definitely been a goal throughout my career. So it’s a milestone, in that sense. But I don’t think much can be held upon the meaning of a one-way. It’s part of the business, but if the hockey doesn’t hold up, then the contract.… It doesn’t matter how many ways it is.”
In other words, Hathaway won’t be satisfied to be the highest-paid guy on the farm.
Whether he is stationed in Calgary or with the American Hockey League’s Stockton Heat, he is due to collect US$850,000 during the upcoming campaign.
The 26-year-old Hathaway reupped Monday as a restricted free-agent, avoiding an arbitration hearing but barely earning a mention on a day dominated — and rightfully so — by coverage of Jarome Iginla’s retirement bash.
Hathaway is never going to challenge Iginla’s franchise scoring records, but the hard-nosed and hard-working forward from Kennebunkport, Me., is hoping he has skated his final shifts in the minors.
He logged a career-high 59 outings for the Flames last winter, contributing four tallies and nine assists. He also scrapped six times.
“It’s always been my goal to spend more and more time in the NHL every year,” said Hathaway, who initially accepted that AHL-only deal after completing his collegiate career with the Brown University Bears and has now totalled 99 appearances on the big stage and 173 more on behalf of Calgary ’s top affiliate. “I think you gain what it takes to be that everyday player and how to be ready to play every day. And you pick up a lot from the guys that you play with, too.”
Hathaway’s path to full-time duties seems pretty clear — it’s directly through his opponents.
The six-foot-two, 208-pound thumper ranked second on the Flames with 154 hits last season.
Micheal Ferland, the only guy credited with more collisions, has since been traded to Carolina.
“Part of what his game is all about is that he needs to be fullthrottle all the time,” said Flames general manager Brad Treliving of Hathaway. “And part of what he’s good at is being a pain-in-the-rearend to play against, being physical, getting in on the forecheck, being hard on the other team’s defence and just creating some havoc.
“That has sort of been his ID, and you can’t change that. That’s part of who he is, so certainly we are going to be looking for him to continue with it.”
With the off-season additions of Elias Lindholm, James Neal and Austin Czarnik, suddenly the Flames have a crowded depth chart at right wing.
Troy Brouwer, Spencer Foo and Curtis Lazar are also in the mix, while left-hander Michael Frolik has experience on both flanks.
With a new coach in Bill Peters, there’s an opportunity for the past pecking order at all positions to be re-established.
An Ivy League grad, Hathaway understands the math. He reminded, though, he has never been a guy who shows up in September with a guaranteed spot in the lineup or even in the league.
“There is always going to be a battle and there’s always going to be a fight for ice-time, a fight for a spot on the team,” Hathaway said. “It’s exciting, honestly.”