Washington Capitals sign defenseman Ethan Bear to two-year contract

The Washington Capitals have signed Ethan Bear to a two-year contract. The deal is worth $4.125 million with an AAV of $2.0625 million. The deal will pay him $1.375 million in the first year and $2.75 million in the second. The reason for this is because the first year of the contract will be pro-rated, meaning he won’t earn anywhere near his cap hit. The team set it up this way so he can earn as much money as possible on this contract.

Bear hasn’t played any NHL games this season and was coming off a one-year, $2.2 million contract he signed with the Carolina Hurricanes. However, before he could play any games in Carolina during the 2022-23 season, he was dealt to the Vancouver Canucks along with Lane Pederson in exchange for a fifth-round pick. The Canucks did not qualify him as a restricted free agent so he became an unrestricted free agent in the offseason.

Bear has been dealing with injury issues over the last few seasons and they raised doubts on his NHL future. He was only able to play 61 games last season and had to wait until after Christmas this year to make his NHL debut. At 26 years old, Bear will be playing for the fourth different team of his career. His resume includes stints with the Hurricanes, Canucks, Edmonton Oilers, and now the Capitals.

A number of teams approached Bear’s camp in an effort to sign him but he chose to go with the Capitals because they were the only team offering him a multi-year contract. The deal comes as a bit of a risk for the team due to Bear’s injury history but they’ve shown that they have confidence in the defender that he will be a solid addition for them.

The Capitals next game is on Friday night against the New York Islanders and that could be Bear’s season debut.