Isles lock down Clutterbuck on 5-year deal
Boy, Matt Martin must feel left out.
Islanders right winger Cal Clutterbuck avoided what would have been an anxious trade deadline by signing a five-year, $17.5 million deal Friday, carrying an annual salary-cap hit of $3.5 million, leaving Martin as the only member of the team’s former vaunted fourth line who didn’t re-sign.
The 29-year-old Clutterbuck was set to be an unrestricted free agent this summer, and if he and general manager Garth Snow were far off on an extension, he likely would have been a valuable commodity come the Feb. 28 trade deadline. Instead, Clutterbuck joined his longtime center, Casey Cizikas, who signed a five-year, $16.75 million deal that kicked in this season, with an annual salary-cap hit of $3.35 million.
Martin was the left wing on that line for almost three seasons, but he left this summer as an unrestricted free agent to sign a four-year, $10 million deal with the Maple Leafs.
Clutterbuck has the most skill of all three players, having scored 15 goals twice in his career, including this past season, when he also added two tallies in the playoffs. The native of Welland, Ontario, originally came to the Isles before the 2013-14 season in a deal that sent No. 5 overall pick Nino Niederreiter to the Wild.
Clutterbuck, who came in the deal with a third-round pick, was a restricted free agent at the time and quickly signed a four-year, $11 million deal at $2.75 million per. His big-hitting, in-your-face style, along with an aptitude for killing penalties, immediately had the fan base and his teammates enamored.
He has been open about enjoying living on Long Island, and now he and his family can finally settle down for a while.