Carolina Hurricanes sign Chase Priskie to two-year entry level contract

The Carolina Hurricanes lost a Hobey Baker finalist from their organization when Adam Fox declined the opportunity to sign with the club and was eventually traded to the New York Rangers. On Saturday, the Hurricanes replaced Fox with another college defenseman, another member of the Hobey Baker shortlist and a player they’ve had their eye on for months.

Chase Priskie, an unsigned sixth-round pick of the Washington Capitals in the 2016 NHL Draft, became a free agent on Thursday when the Capitals’ draft rights expired, and it took less than two days for the division-rival Hurricanes to snap him up, signing the former captain of the Quinnipiac Bobcats to a two-year entry level contract. Priskie was a top-ten finalist for the 2019 Hobey Baker Trophy, awarded to the top player in college hockey, and captained the Bobcats for two seasons, earning first-team all-conference honors in his senior season. He is the all-time goal scoring leader among Quinnipiac defensemen with 39 career goals, and his 17 goals in 36 games last season led all defensemen in college hockey.

Priskie fills the hole left behind by Fox’s departure and, with his college eligibility exhausted, he is eligible for assignment to the American Hockey League if he does not make the Hurricanes squad out of training camp. In all likelihood, the right-shooting defenseman will end up with the Charlotte Checkers, and stands a good chance of making his NHL debut in the upcoming season.

The release from the team is below.

CANES AGREE TO TERMS WITH CHASE PRISKIE
Defenseman agrees to two-year, entry-level contract

Don Waddell, President and General Manager of the National Hockey League’s Carolina Hurricanes, today announced that the team has agreed to terms with defenseman Chase Priskie on a two-year, entry-level contract. Priskie will earn $832,500 per season at the NHL level and $70,000 per season at the AHL level, and he will receive a signing bonus of $185,000.

“Chase was one of the best defensemen in college hockey last season,” said Waddell. “We believe he has a bright future in the NHL, and we’re thrilled that he has chosen to come to Carolina.”

Priskie, 23, registered 39 points (17g, 22a) in 36 games with Quinnipiac last season. He led all NCAA Division I defensemen in goals, power-play goals (10) and game-winning goals (5), and was named a top 10 finalist for the Hobey Baker Award in 2018-19. The 5’11”, 192-pound blueliner recorded 116 points (39g, 77a) in 154 collegiate games over four seasons and served as Quinnipiac’s captain in both 2017-18 and 2018-19. Priskie was named to the 2018-19 ECAC Hockey First Team and was named to the ECAC Hockey All-Academic Team during all four seasons of college. Among defensemen, Priskie ranks first in Quinnipiac program history in goals, second in points and third in assists. The Pembroke Pines, Fla., native was drafted by the Washington Capitals in the sixth round, 177th overall, of the 2016 NHL Draft.