Good depth for Grand Rapids:
UPDATE: The Detroit #RedWings today agreed to terms with goaltender Calvin Pickard on a one-year contract extension. pic.twitter.com/QJmyEKepVz— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) July 28, 2021
Here’s the press release for the Pickard and Gagner signings:
DETROIT AGREES TO TERMS WITH CENTER SAM GAGNER AND GOALTENDER CALVIN PICKARD
… Red Wings Agree to One-Year Extensions with Pending Free Agents …DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings today agreed to terms with center Sam Gagner and goaltender Calvin Pickard on one-year contract extensions.
Gagner, 31, appeared in 42 games for the Red Wings in 2020-21 and ranked among team leaders with seven goals (T7th), 15 points (T8th) and 88 shots (5th). The 14-year NHL veteran made history last season after notching his third career hat trick on Feb. 25 vs. Nashville, becoming the ninth player in NHL history to go nine-or-more years in between hat tricks. He also logged his 300th NHL assist on March 11 vs. Tampa Bay. After making the NHL as an 18-year-old in 2007-08, Gagner has totaled 474 points (171-303-474) over his 886-game NHL career with the Edmonton Oilers, Arizona Coyotes, Philadelphia Flyers, Columbus Blue Jackets, Vancouver Canucks and Red Wings. The 5-foot-11, 200-pound forward has seven seasons of 40-or-more points under his belt, most recently with a career-best 50 points (18-32-50) with Columbus in 2016-17. Gagner has also appeared in parts of three American Hockey League seasons with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, Toronto Marlies and Bakersfield Condors, totaling 47 points (15-32-47) and 21 penalty minutes in 56 games between 2015-20.
Originally drafted in the first round (sixth overall) by Edmonton in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft, Gagner split his junior career between the United States Hockey League’s Sioux City Musketeers (2005-06) and Ontario Hockey League’s London Knights (2006-07), logging 46 points (11-35-46) in 56 USHL games and racking up 118 points (35-83-118) in 53 OHL games prior to being drafted. The London, Ontario, native has also represented Canada internationally on several occasions, notably winning gold medals at the 2007 IIHF World Junior Championship and the 2012 Spengler Cup, along with a silver medal at the 2008 IIHF World Championship.
Pickard, 29, played six games for the Red Wings in 2020-21, logging a 2-1-1 record, 3.16 goals-against average and 0.874 save percentage, spending most of the season on the team’s taxi squad. He also played three games for the American Hockey League’s Grand Rapids Griffins, posting a 1-1-1 record, 3.33 goals-against average and 0.882 save percentage. Prior to the start of the NHL season, Pickard played in six games with the Vienna Capitals of Austria’s IceHL, sporting a 3-3-0 record, 1.96 goals-against average and 0.919 save percentage. Pickard has played nine games for Detroit over the last two seasons and has made 113 appearances in his NHL career, owning a 34-53-10 record, 3.01 goals-against average, 0.904 save percentage and four shutouts with the Colorado Avalanche, Toronto Maple Leafs, Philadelphia Flyers, Arizona Coyotes and Red Wings.
Entering his 10th professional campaign, Pickard also played 33 games for the Griffins in 2019-20, notching a 17-12-4 record, 2.86 goals-against average, 0.903 save percentage and three shutouts. In 236 AHL games with the Lake Erie Monsters, San Antonio Rampage, Toronto Marlies, Tucson Roadrunners and Griffins since 2011-12, the 6-foot-1, 210-pound netminder has a 111-84-20 record, 2.65 goals-against average, 0.913 save percentage and 15 shutouts. Originally drafted by the Avalanche in the second round (49th overall) of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, Pickard spent his entire major-junior career with the Western Hockey League’s Seattle Thunderbirds from 2008-12, totaling a 91-120-27 record, 3.29 goals-against average, 0.909 save percentage and 12 shutouts. The Moncton, New Brunswick, native has also represented Canada at the 2016 and 2017 IIHF World Championships, winning a gold and silver medal, respectively.
