After overcoming early career injuries, the hard-nosed former sixth-round pick secures a new bridge deal as he vies for a depth role in the Islanders' bottom-six rotation.
The New York Islanders announced on Thursday morning that they had signed pending restricted free agent forward Daylan Kuefler to a two-year, two-way deal.
Kuefler, who the Islanders selected in the sixth round (No. 174) of the 2022 NHL Draft, had battled injuries, playing just 38 games for the Bridgeport Islanders over his first two seasons with the club, which doesn't include the 17 games he played for the ECHL's Worcester Railers.
But this past season, Kuefler, back healthy, played in 67 games for Bridgeport, recording 10 goals with 15 assists for 25 points in a bottom-six role.
The 24-year-old, who just completed the final season of his three-year entry-level deal worth $840,000 at the NHL level and $82,500 at the AHL level, gets a bit of a raise:
Kuefler was a pending restricted free agent with arbitration rights, with a qualifying offer worth $813,750 at the NHL level.
The organization really likes the player and after battling some adversity, Kuefler could get a look on the fourth line at some point over the length of this new deal.