Just hours before he was set to become an unrestricted free agent, Jay Bouwmeester has signed a 5-year, $6.6 million a year deal with the Calgary Flames. Calgary general manager Darryl Sutter took advantage of his acquisition of J-Bo's rights on Draft Day and added a nice piece to the Flames blue line.
From the official release:
“Jay is one of the most complete defenseman in the game, and we are very pleased to have reached an agreement that will make him an important component of the Calgary Flames success,” said Sutter. “We identified Jay as the priority player where we were going to focus our money. We wanted an opportunity a few days in advance of the deadline, and that’s why we made the move we did this past weekend.”
“I am happy to have this deal done as Calgary was a team I was very interested in playing for. I was encouraged by the commitment Calgary showed by acquiring me prior to July 1,” said Bouwmeester. “I am familiar with some of the players and believe we have a strong club that is poised to make the next step in becoming a championship club. I look forward to contributing to that success.”
Calgary now has approximately $35 million wrapped up between Bouwmeester, Jarome Iginla, Daymond Langkow, Dion Phaneuf, Robyn Regehr, and Miikka Kiprusoff through at least the 2011-12 season (Olli Jokinen's contract is up after next season). Is there another move coming for Sutter and the Flames?
