Hutton knows way to San Jose

Carter Hutton may have started the NHL playoffs cheering for the upstart Philadelphia Flyers, but he’ll finish it rooting for the San Jose Sharks.

The 24-year-old Thunder Bay netminder spent a couple of months this spring with the Flyers organization after finishing his university career, but then weighed his options and signed a one-year free agent deal with the San Jose Sharks.

The perennial Western Conference contenders just seemed like a better fit, said Hutton, who spent Thursday morning teaching students at Nor’wester View School the ins and outs of playing hockey, one of several athletes from a number of sports who volunteered for the first-time event.

"With the way the collective bargaining agreement is, you can’t sign an entry-level contract past age 25, so I signed a one-year contract, so I’ll be a restricted free agent, still with San Jose.

"It’s pretty exciting. After the Philadelphia situation I talked to several teams and San Jose just seemed like the best fit for me to prolong my career."

The deal won’t officially be announced until after the Sharks finish their playoff run. Entering Thursday’s pivotal Game 3 the Sharks trail the Chicago Blackhawks 2-0 in the Western Conference final.

The Hockey News ranks Hutton seventh on San Jose’s goaltending depth chart, though all six goalies listed behind starter Evgeni Nabokov are designated with rookie asterisks, meaning there’s not a lot of experience in the organization.

The deal hasn’t been released publicly by the Sharks, but that’s more a matter of housekeeping than anything else, he said.

"Once the playoffs end it will be officially announced. But other than that they’ve told me to have a good summer and keep working hard. I’ve dealt a lot with their trainers and their athletic staff and just getting myself prepared to come in and have a good training camp and set myself up well for the season," Hutton said.

Signing with San Jose completes a whirlwind couple of months for the former Fort William North Stars puck-stopper, who last fall began his senior season at UMass-Lowell and proceeded to earn 13 wins and post a stellar 2.04 goals against average and .928 save percentage.

Overall he set the school’s all-time marks for goals against average (2.33), shutouts (10) and save percentage (.913).

Though his classes weren’t yet done, the professional ranks came calling once his final college game was completed, and he wound up in a part-time, weekend-only role with the American Hockey League’s Adirondack Phantoms, the Flyers top farm team.

Hutton played four games with the Phantoms before goaltending issues in the City of Brotherly Love forced the Flyers to offer him an emergency amateur tryout contract to replace the injured Johan Backlund in the Philadelphia lineup for their March 28 game against the New Jersey Devils.

Hutton didn’t see any ice time during his one-game stint, but he called it a pretty crazy couple of days nonetheless.

The Flyers beat the Devils that night, chasing Martin Brodeur from the Philadelphia goal, something not many teams have managed to do over the years. He was equally in awe of the talent on his own bench.

"Especially the guys introducing myself and stuff like that," he said. "The majority of them I’ve watched my whole career coming up. But at the same time, you’re there to do a job and you go there focused and ready to play."

For the record, Hutton wouldn’t say who he’s been cheering for in the postseason, Philadelphia or San Jose.

His priorities, it seems, lie closer to home.

"I’d like to see someone from Thunder Bay win the Stanley Cup. But whatever happens these playoffs have been great for the NHL and great for hockey in general."