Devils sign Ryan Schmelzer to two-year, two-way contract
New Jersey Devils President and General Manager Tom Fitzgerald and Devils’ Assistant General Manager and Utica Comets General Manager Dan MacKinnon announced that the club has signed forward Ryan Schmelzer to a two-year, two-way contract.
The contract will have an average annual value of $775,000 at the NHL level and $275,000 at the American Hockey League level.
#NEWS: We’ve signed F Ryan Schmelzer to a two-year, two-way contract.
📰: https://t.co/FtVBsLNgm7 pic.twitter.com/yWtBC2Bbtc
Schmelzer spent the 2023-24 season with the Utica Comets where he registered 18 goals and 34 assists for a career high 52 points. Schmelzer led all Comets skaters in points and had a plus/minus rating of +14. The third-year captain was the only Comets skater to appear in all 72 regular season games.
Schmelzer signed an AHL contract with Utica in 2018 after spending four seasons with Canisius College in the NCAA. Throughout his four years, Schmelzer notched 40 goals and 66 assists for 106 points in 143 contests, he was named captain during his senior year with the club.
In six seasons with Utica, the Buffalo, New York product has accumulated 65 goals and 109 assists for 174 points in 337 regular season games. Schmelzer appeared in 11 Calder Cup Playoff contests in 2021-22 and 2022-23, adding four goals and two assists.