The Buffalo Sabres revamped their goaltending unit highlighted by the signing of free agent goaltender Carter Hutton.
Last season the Buffalo Sabres were second to last in the NHL in goals allowed with 280 and one of only 3 teams to have a save percentage under .900. The goaltending issue was addressed this offseason with the departures of Robin Lehner and Chad Johnson and the additions of Carter Hutton and Scott Wedgewood and the signing of 2017 second-round draft pick Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen.
Leading the new crop of goaltenders is Carter Hutton. The UMass-Lowell standout has spent his career as a backup in Chicago, Nashville, and St. Louis. Hutton was arguably the most sought after goaltender in free agency this past offseason. Hutton is coming off of a season with the St. Louis Blues in which he led the NHL in save percentage and goals against average while starting 26 games.
First off, let’s take a look at how Carter Hutton compares to the other significant free agent goaltender signings of the summer.
| Goalie | Team | Contract | Age | GAA | Sv% | GSAA | XSv% | HDSv% |
| Hutton | Sabres | 8.25M/3Y | 32 | 2.09 | 0.931 | 16.94 | 91% | 79.44% |
| Lehner | Islanders | 1.5M/1Y | 27 | 3.01 | 0.908 | -10.65 | 91.52% | 77.12% |
| Ward | Blackhawks | 3M/1Y | 34 | 2.73 | 0.906 | -10.21 | 91.42% | 78.26% |
| Halak | Bruins | 5.5M/2Y | 33 | 3.19 | 0.908 | 0.3 | 90.73% | 77.64% |
| Mrazek | Hurricanes | 1.5M/1Y | 26 | 3.22 | 0.891 | -7.31 | 90.85% | 77.87% |
| Khudobin | Stars | 5M/2Y | 27 | 2.56 | 0.913 | 6.04 | 90.72% | 80.18% |
| Bernier | Red Wings | 9M/3Y | 29 | 2.85 | 0.913 | -11.35 | 91.91% | 76.15% |
Statistics from hockey-reference.com and corsicahockey.com
When it comes to the traditional statistics, goals against average (GAA) and save percentage (Sv%), Hutton obviously is the best of the pack as he was the league leader in 2017-18 and his GAA was almost a full goal better than the 3.01 that Robin Lehner posted.
OFFICIAL: We've agreed to terms with goaltender Carter Hutton on a 3-year contract.
— Buffalo Sabres (@BuffaloSabres) July 1, 2018
Welcome to Buffalo, @CarterHutton! pic.twitter.com/CXnfaf9GNO
The “advanced” statistics/analytics show an even clearer picture of how strong Hutton’s year was last year. Hutton’s goals saved above average, GSAA, was the best in the group and 12th in the league (for perspective, Robin Lehner was just outside the bottom 10 in the league). For the uninitiated to this statistic, InGoal Magazine has a great explanation, but you can think of it as an adjusted plus/minus for goaltenders. Hutton is also one of the strongest in the group in expected save percentage (XSv%) and high-danger save percentage (HDSv%).
We know Carter Hutton is a strong goaltender, the questions remain where does he fit in and is the contract worth it.
Linus Ullmark is the goaltender of the future for the Buffalo Sabres. Additionally, the Sabres have Luukkonen a few years behind him. The Sabres gave Hutton $8.25 million over 3 years which is a great deal for a starting goaltender. The caveat is the assumption has to be that Hutton will not be the starter for the bulk of the contract, depending on when Ullmark will be able to handle a full NHL workload. Ullmark played 44 games for Rochester and 5 games for Buffalo last season. How Hutton and Ullmark split time will be one of the top stories of the year for the Sabres starting day one of training camp. If Hutton can put up similar numbers to last season while splitting time with Ullmark, Phil Housely will have a much needed improvement in net.
Next: Buffalo Sabres Additions : Conor Sheary
What are your expectations for Carter Hutton! Leave your comments below!