Will Butcher

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United StatesUnited States  Will Butcher Ice hockey player
Date of birth January 6, 1995
place of birth Sun Prairie , Wisconsin , USA
size 178 cm
Weight 86 kg
position defender
number #8th
Shot hand Left
Draft
NHL Entry Draft 2013 , 5th round, 123rd position
Colorado Avalanche
Career stations
2011 Dubuque Fighting Saints
2011-2013 USA Hockey National Team Development Program
2013-2017 University of Denver
since 2017 New Jersey Devils

Will Butcher (born January 6, 1995 in Sun Prairie , Wisconsin ) is an American ice hockey player who has been under contract with the New Jersey Devils in the National Hockey League since August 2017 .

Career

Youth and University

Will Butcher was born in Sun Prairie and played for the Madison Capitols in his youth . In 2011, the defender ran in two games for the Dubuque Fighting Saints in the United States Hockey League (USHL), the highest junior league in the United States. He then moved to the USA Hockey National Team Development Program (NTDP), the central talent factory of the US hockey association USA Hockey . With the selections of the NTDP, Butcher took part in the USHL's game operations, but also played numerous games outside of regular competitions. In addition, the NTDP teams also act as junior national teams, so that in 2012 he won the silver medal at the World U-17 Hockey Challenge and the gold medal at the U18 World Championship . The following year he won a silver medal at the U18 World Cup in 2013 . After two years Butcher retired due to age from the NTDP and was selected in parallel in the NHL Entry Draft 2013 in 123rd position by the Colorado Avalanche .

The defender then enrolled at the University of Denver and from then on took part in the game operations of the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) with their pioneers . In his first two years he won the NCHC championship with the Pioneers (2014) and represented the US U20 national team at the U20 World Championships in 2014 and 2015 , each without winning a medal. For the 2015/16 season he significantly increased his personal statistics to 32 scorer points in 39 games, so that at the end of the season he was elected to the NCHC First All-Star Team . In 2016/17 he won the national championship of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) as team captain with the University of Denver , while he was personally honored with the Hobey Baker Memorial Award for best college player in the USA and as NCHC player of the year. After a total of four years, Butcher left the university with a business degree .

NHL

After the 2016-17 college season ended, Butcher received a contract offer from the Colorado Avalanche. The defender refused, however, against the background that player rights acquired in the draft are only valid for four years and he could therefore enter into negotiations as a free agent with all teams of the National Hockey League (NHL) in August 2017 . This happened as a result, where he was considered the most wooed college free agent and was particularly associated with the New Jersey Devils , Buffalo Sabers and Vegas Golden Knights . Finally, the New Jersey Devils announced Butcher's engagement at the end of August 2017 and provided him with a two-year entry-level contract .

As a result, Butcher made his debut for the Devils in the NHL in October 2017 and promptly scored three assists, setting a new franchise record. He finished his first NHL season with 44 points, more than any other rookie defender in the history of the Devils (previously Vyacheslav Fetissov , 1989/90, 42 points). As a result, the American was voted into the NHL All-Rookie Team of the Year. After his first professional season, Butcher also made his debut in the senior national team in his home country, winning the bronze medal at the 2018 World Cup . In July 2019, his expiring contract was extended by three years, with the defender being said to receive an average annual salary of around 3.7 million US dollars.

Achievements and Awards

International

Career statistics

Status: end of the 2019/20 season

Regular season Playoffs
season team league Sp T V Pt +/- SM Sp T V Pt +/- SM
2010/11 Dubuque Fighting Saints USHL 2 0 2 2 +2 0 - - - - - -
2011/12 USA Hockey NTDP USHL 31 2 8th 10 -5 4th - - - - - -
2012/13 USA Hockey NTDP USHL 26th 3 10 13 +15 2 - - - - - -
2013/14 University of Denver NCAA 38 8th 8th 16 -3 8th
2014/15 University of Denver NCAA 38 4th 14th 18th +6 8th
2015/16 University of Denver NCAA 39 9 23 32 +19 19th
2016/17 University of Denver NCAA 43 7th 30th 37 +27 18th
2017/18 New Jersey Devils NHL 81 5 39 44 +1 8th 5 1 3 4th ± 0 0
2018/19 New Jersey Devils NHL 78 4th 26th 30th -17 18th - - - - - -
2019/20 New Jersey Devils NHL 56 4th 17th 21st -8th 6th - - - - - -
USHL total 59 5 20th 25th +12 6th - - - - - -
NCAA overall 158 28 75 103 +49 53
NHL overall 215 13 82 95 -24 32 5 1 3 4th ± 0 0

International

Represented the USA at:

year team event result Sp T V Pt +/- SM
2012 United States WHC Silver medal 5 0 6th 6th 2
2012 United States U18 World Cup gold medal 6th 0 0 0 ± 0 2
2013 United States U18 World Cup Silver medal 7th 2 2 4th +2 2
2014 United States U20 World Cup 5th place 5 2 3 5 ± 0 2
2015 United States U20 World Cup 5th place 5 0 1 1 +2 0
2018 United States WM Bronze medal 10 1 2 3 +1 0
Juniors overall 28 4th 12 16 8th
Men overall 10 1 2 3 +1 0

( Legend for player statistics: Sp or GP = games played; T or G = goals scored; V or A = assists scored ; Pkt or Pts = scorer points scored ; SM or PIM = penalty minutes received ; +/− = plus / minus balance; PP = overpaid goals scored ; SH = underpaid goals scored ; GW = winning goals scored; 1  play-downs / relegation )

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. College hockey: Denver's Will Butcher wins 2017 Hobey Baker Award. ncaa.com, April 7, 2017, accessed August 29, 2017 .
  2. ^ Mike Chambers: Will Butcher to reject Avalanche, visit with Devils, Sabers, Golden Knights. denverpost.com, August 15, 2017, accessed August 29, 2017 .
  3. ^ Satchel Price: Everything you need to know about Will Butcher, the NHL's next top college free agent. sbnation.com, August 15, 2017, accessed August 29, 2017 .
  4. Mike Harrington: Sabers notebook: Butcher nearing decision, Amerks slate Harbor Center exhibition. buffalonews.com, August 25, 2017, accessed August 29, 2017 .
  5. ^ Devils agree to terms on a two-year entry-level deal with Will Butcher. nhl.com, August 28, 2017, accessed on August 29, 2017 .
  6. Chris Ryan: Will Butcher's record-setting debut paces Devils past Avalanche. nj.com, October 7, 2017, accessed April 22, 2018 .