Cal Petersen signs three-year deal; two-way in 19-20, one-way in 20-21, 21-22

The LA Kings inked the second-to-last of their restricted free agents today, with goaltender Cal Petersen agreeing to a three-year contract extension, carrying an AAV $858,333. Petersen’s deal during the 2019-20 season will be a two-way contract, with years two and three (2020-21, 2021-22) being one-way deals.

Via Cap Friendly, Petersen’s AHL salary next season is $200K, with a $425K guarantee.

Petersen made his NHL debut with the Kings in November 2018 and posted a 5-4-1 record across 11 total games played. The Iowa native amassed a 2.60 goals-against average and a .924 save percentage, as well as a 29-save shutout against St. Louis on November 20, the first of his NHL career. In the AHL, Petersen had the fourth most saves across the league (1,218), despite playing in just the 26th most minutes. Though his numbers (4.02 GAA & .896 SV%) were out of line with his 2017-18 campaign, much of his statistical season can be attributed to a young, fluctuating group in front of him, which resulted in a high-rate of chances against.

The financials of Petersen’s deal would put him on a one-way deal as his waivers exemption is expected to expire, for the 2020-21 season.

Only Adrian Kempe remains as a restricted free agent for LA. As Jon touched on yesterday, Kempe’s new deal has been the focus of General Manager Rob Blake since completing Alex Iafallo’s two-year extension last week.

Quotes –

Reign Head Coach Mike Stothers on Cal Petersen’s season being better than his numbers suggest
I didn’t even look at Cal’s numbers here, because they weren’t a true indication of what he meant to the team, how well he played for us. He was a victim of circumstance. I like to look at it as how he responded to it. He never once tried to duck the assignment that was placed in front of him, never once did he have issues with the players that played in front of him, never once did he question anything. You can have great numbers and it doesn’t necessarily mean you’re going to be an NHL goaltender and you can have numbers that are a little bit off, but I think you have to look at the overall game and the overall performance and what he did for us night after night after night. There were times there when it looked like it was him against the opposition and he battled.

Stothers on Cal Petersen’s play (3/8 in Tucson)
He was alright. They only had 47 shots, I mean, if it gets up in the 60 range then we’ll talk about how good he is *laughs*. No, he was terrific. He was terrific…he just did the job for us, closed the door and he looked good in doing it too, like he was composed, there was no extra movement. He looked like he was dialed in.

Bill Ranford on Petersen’s cerebral growth (upon his NHL recall)
He’s got a great demeanor, and there’s no doubt about that. That’s the thing that we loved about him when we went after him. They’ve got a young team down there. We can’t make any excuses. He knows his job is to stop the hockey puck, and that’s what he loves to do, and we we’re going to need him to do it at this level now.

Petersen Vitals –

LOS ANGELES – The LA Kings have signed restricted free agent goaltender Cal Petersen to a three-year contract extension, Kings Vice President and General Manager Rob Blake announced today. His contract carries an AAV of $858,333 and is a two-way contract in the first year. The final two years of the contract are one-way.

The 24-year-old Petersen (born Oct. 19, 1994) made his NHL debut last season with the Kings, playing in 11 games with a 5-4-1 record, 2.60 goals-against average, .924 save percentage and one shutout. His first two career starts came on consecutive nights (Nov. 16 at Chicago and Nov. 17 at Nashville), becoming the first Kings rookie goaltender to make his first two NHL starts in this fashion since Wayne Rutledge did so on Oct. 14 and 15, 1967 (the first two games in franchise history).

Signed as an unrestricted free agent out of Notre Dame (NCAA) by the Kings in July of 2017, the Waterloo, Iowa native appeared in 38 games with the Ontario Reign (AHL) last season, posting a 13-19-3 record, 4.02 goals-against average and a .896 save percentage. In two seasons with the Reign, he has totaled 79 games, 3.26 goals-against average, .902 save percentage and four shutouts while posting a 36-33-5 record.