Blue Jackets Sign Carson Soucy To PTO

This afternoon the Columbus Blue Jackets announced that they’ve brought in defenseman Carson Soucy on a professional tryout agreement.

The 32-year-old lefty spent last season in New York, starting on Broadway with the Rangers where he skated in 46 games. In late January the veteran was traded to the rival Islanders in exchange for a 2026 third-round pick, going on to play in 30 games on Long Island, completing the season with 12 points in 76 games as a shutdown defender.

As a solid bottom-pairing option teams have been happy to pick up and staple onto their penalty killing units, traded for a real asset during the winter, it’s somewhat unexpected that Soucy would eventually be unable to secure a guaranteed contract. AFP Analytics projected he’d be worth a two-year deal worth around $2.15MM. Working a bit against him is his left-handedness. Mike Reilly, for example, settled for a two-way contract in Carolina earlier this week. The market was nicer to right-handers, with veterans Erik Gudbranson and Zach Bogosian fetching one-year extensions, while Radko Gudas and Vincent Desharnais both received eyebrow raising contracts with significant term.

For what he faces in Columbus, the aforementioned Gudbranson’s veteran leadership solidifies his place on the roster at age 34. It’ll be Jake Christiansen who he’ll directly compete with, the 27-year-old a pending UFA at $975k who played in 40 games last year, a drop from his 68 the year prior. With a 28th ranked penalty kill last season, there’s a need for somebody like Soucy, although with seven adequate NHL options on the roster already there’s not an obvious fit as things stand.