On Wednesday, the Detroit Red Wings and Per Mrazek avoided arbitration and agreed on a new two-year deal.
The contract reportedly will average $4 million per year over the period effectively placing Mrazek as the number one goalie in Detroit.
Mrazek posted a 27-16-6 record in 2015-16 with a 0.921 save percentage along with four shutouts; his goals against average was 2.33.
Goalie Petr Mrazek – file photo by Lewis Bleiman
“Obviously, it’s good any time you can negotiate a settlement versus going through arbitration, where it’s never a great process in building relationships with your players,” general manager Ken Holland told The Detroit News. “It’s not something that’s motivating for the player and motivating for the club.”
With Mrazek at number one, jimmy Howard will be the number two but his cap hit is more than $5 million annually. It is difficult to imagine the Wings keeping Howard for the entire season without looking to trade him and the hit away.
“We have a good, young goalie in Petr, but he’s still evolving,” Holland told the Detroit Free Press. “Last year, he had a tough stretch at the end, and Jimmy Howard stepped in and won some games for us.”
Detroit resigned Jared Coreau to a two-year contract early in July.
The Red Wings also avoided arbitration Tuesday with defenseman Danny DeKeyser when they signed a six-year contract.
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