Carter Hutton was probably going to spend the majority of the upcoming season in the American Hockey League.
The NHL lockout dispute between the players and the owners has all but ensured it.
The Thunder Bay goaltender, who spent Monday night practicing with the Lakehead Thunderwolves, 12 days before the Chicago Blackhawks product is scheduled to report to the training camp of the Rockford IceHogs, got his marching orders a couple of days before the work stoppage began.
“Yeah, I got sent down a couple of days ago,” said Hutton, sporting a Thunderwolves practice jersey. “I guess it was just a process they have to do, clearing waivers and things like that because of my age.
“But it doesn’t really change anything for me. (Goalies) Ray Emery and Corey Crawford are still up there. It’s a situation that kind of could have happened anyway.”
Hutton, 26, is coming off a stellar sophomore season in the AHL, posting a 2.35 goals against average and .917 save percentage in 43 games with the IceHogs to go with a 22-13-4 record.
A graduate of the University of Massachusetts-Lowell program and the first former Superior International Junior Hockey League player to dress in an NHL game, the ex-Fort William North Star split last season between Rockford and Toledo of the ECHL, with a one-game call-up to the big leagues where for the third time in three seasons he sat on the bench as a back-up.
Hutton was eager to show the Hawks brass he deserves an NHL shot. But he’s not letting the lockout get him down.
“Being No. 3 in the system right now, my goal doesn’t change. I’m still playing hockey. I’m going to the American Hockey League and whether it’s the American Hockey League or the NHL, my goal is the same, that I continue to develop and get better no matter where I’m playing.”
Still, it’s a bit disappointing, he admitted.
“Yeah, it’s frustrating. I had some big stepping stones from last year coming into this season. But at the same time it’s out of my control. It’s tough. You want to see hockey. None of the guys want to have a lockout. But that’s the business side of it. I can’t worry about that. I prepare the same way and hopefully when the time does come I’m ready to go for my shot.”
Not that he won’t get the chance to play against some of the game’s rising stars in the AHL this season, as long as the players remained locked out.
Several big-name players, including Edmonton’s Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Jeff Skinner of the Carolina Hurricanes, were sent to the minors in the hours leading up to the end of the NHL’s collective bargaining agreement.
“That’s another thing. The American League’s going to be even better and more watched and scouted, so it’s a good chance for me to really show that I’m capable of playing at the next level and continue to grow my game,” said Hutton, who was joined by newly signed goalie Paul Karpowich of the St. Louis Blues organization on the ice on Monday night while Wolves goalies Alex Dupuis and Jeff Bosch attended class.
Notes: Lakehead coach Joel Scherban said there really hasn’t been a trickle-down effect as the NHL lockout forces players to find elsewhere to play, though he expects some players may be looking for openings if the labour dispute lasts beyond Christmas.
