Islanders sign veteran defenseman Ben Hutton to one-year deal
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The gist
The New York Islanders signed 33-year-old defenseman Ben Hutton to a one-year, $900,000 deal after a short PTO.
The move adds blue-line depth with Ryan Pulock and Alexander Romanov injured.
Background
Ben Hutton is a 33-year-old left-shot defenseman from Brockville, Ontario, a Stanley Cup winner with the Vegas Golden Knights in 2023 who has played 575 career NHL games. He spent the last five seasons with Vegas, posting 15 points in 55 games in 2025-26 and one assist in seven games during the team's run to the 2026 Stanley Cup Final. Unsigned into November after the Ottawa Senators released him from a tryout, he got a new look from the Islanders, whose defensive group was depleted by injuries.
How it unfolded
- Sep 17, 2026Hutton signed a professional tryout agreement with the Ottawa Senators.
- Sep 29, 2026The Senators released Hutton after he appeared in two preseason games.
- Oct 7, 2026Islanders defenseman Alexander Romanov tore his ACL.
- Nov 1, 2026Hutton signed a professional tryout agreement with the New York Islanders.
- Nov 3, 2026Hutton joined the Islanders on the tryout amid blue-line injuries, with Ryan Pulock ruled out 2-4 weeks and Romanov out for the season.
- Nov 5, 2026The Islanders announced a one-year, one-way contract for Hutton with a pro-rated $900,000 cap hit; he skated in his second team skate and could have debuted that night against Carolina.
Key terms
- blue-line
- An ice hockey player position mainly responsible for preventing the opposing team from scoring.
- one-way contract
- A professional sports contract where an athlete's salary depends on which league the athlete is assigned to play in.
Source: Wikipedia
Who’s saying what
- Caution
- Lighthouse Hockey wrote that during the 10-day tryout Hutton "could surprise you, or he could confirm that he's done."
- Player
- Hutton called the stretch "a whirlwind," saying he thought he had a good year but nothing came of it before the Islanders opportunity.
Still unverified
Lighthouse Hockey's assessment that Hutton "could surprise you, or he could confirm that he's done" was speculation about how the tryout would go, not a confirmed judgment.