Chicago locked up another player headed for restricted free agency on Thursday morning, signing forward Cole Guttman to a one-year, two-way deal worth $775,000.
Guttman had initially signed with the Blackhawks back on Aug. 18, 2022 on a two-year deal worth $950,000 annually that expired at the end of this season. He came to Chicago after being drafted by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the sixth round (180th overall) of the 2017 NHL Draft.
The now 25-year-old forward played in 27 games last season, notching 8 points (4 G, 4 A) while average 12:37 of ice time per game. He was one of the top performers in Rockford, scoring 40 points (16 G, 24 A) in 39 games.
Guttman has flashed some positivity on the offensive side of the ice while in Chicago and was consistently one of Rockford’s top performers throughout the 2023-24 season, although he missed the IceHogs’ brief postseason stint while recovering from an upper-body injury sustained in early April when he was slashed on the hand in a game against the Grand Rapids Griffins.
That injury had unfortunate timing for Guttman, who was in the middle of his best stretch of play:
The challenge for Guttman now, though, will be to prove his worth at the NHL level. With GM Kyle Davidson saying at the end of the regular season that the team intends to move forward, Guttman is on the list of players who’ll need to turn in the kind of performance that will ensure a spot is carved out for them on current and future NHL rosters.