Ryan Garbutt, one of the 3 signed (Photo taken by Melissa Grissom)
It has been another day at the office for Dallas Stars General Manager Joe Nieuwendyk as today three players were signed to contracts. Swedish defenseman Ludwig Bystrom drafted by the Stars in the second round of the 2012 Entry Draft (43rd overall) was signed to a three year entry-level contract, his contract will start to count once Bystrom turns professional as he is only seventeen right now. Luke Gazdic was also signed to a one year two-way contract today, Gazdic is the primary tough guy in the Stars organization right now, so expect him to get the call-up when the Stars need a big physical force on the fourth line and somebody to keep players from taking liberties with other Dallas Stars. At 6’3 228 pounds he certainly would be considered one of the leagues heavyweights. Gazdic was drafted by the Stars in the 2007 Entry Draft in the sixth round and has spent his entire professional career with the Stars development teams. The “big” deal handed out today was to Stars center Ryan Garbutt who received a two year contract to stay with the organization. The “big” part of this deal is that the contract is a one way contract. Garbutt came up in the late parts of the 2011-2012 season and with pure blue collar effort and grit won the hearts of many Stars fans. Garbutt had never played in the NHL prior to last season.
Official press release from the Stars organization:
DALLAS STARS SIGN RYAN GARBUTT, LUKE GAZDIC, AND LUDWIG BYSTROM TO CONTRACTS
Frisco, TX – The Dallas Stars announced today that the club has signed forward Ryan Garbutt to a two-year contract, forward Luke Gazdic to a one-year, two-way deal and defenseman Ludwig Bystrom to a three-year entry-level contract.
Garbutt, 26, played 20 games for the Dallas Stars last season, posting three points (2 goals, 1 assist) and 22 penalty minutes. The 6-foot-1, 185-pound forward started the 2011-12 campaign with Dallas’ American Hockey League affiliate, the Texas Stars, where in 50 games, he posted 16 goals (fifth-most on the club) and 17 assists for 33 points (seventh on the team).
Prior to his professional hockey career, Garbutt spent four years with Brown University where he earned his bachelor’s degree in economics. He also played for Brown’s hockey club, where he posted 29 goals, 29 assists for 58 points in 116 games. The native of Winnipeg, Manitoba was undrafted and was acquired by the Stars as a free agent on July 1, 2011.
Gazdic, 22, led the Texas Stars with 102 penalty minutes last season, and earned 11 goals and 12 assists for 23 points in 76 games. Dallas’ sixth-round selection (172nd overall) in the 2007 NHL Draft, the 6-foot-3, 228-pound forward has played his entire professional hockey career in Dallas’ development system.
Since 2008-09, Gazdic, a native of Toronto, has scored a total of 23 goals, 21 assists and 44 points in 197 games for the Texas Stars. He has also played six games with the ECHL Idaho Steelheads, where he posted two goals and one assists for three points.
Bystrom, 17, played in three different levels of hockey for MODO in the Swedish Junior League last season – posting an assist and eight penalty minutes in 20 Elite League games; 29 points (7 goals, 22 assists) and 101 PIM in 34 games at the junior level; and scoring a goal in one appearance at the Under-18 level. He added four points (1 goal, 3 assists) in eight junior league playoff games.
Bystrom was part of the Swedish team that won the silver medal at the 2012 Under-18 World Junior Championships, where he earned an assist in six games. He was ranked as the No. 8 European Skater by NHL Central Scouting prior to the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, where he was selected by Dallas in the second-round (43rd overall). The 6-foot-0, 208-pound defenseman is a native of Ornskoldsvik, Sweden.
