Boston Bruins sign Joey Abate to one-year contract
The Boston Bruins have signed Joey Abate to a one-year, two-way contract worth $775,000.
Abate’s contract will last until the end of the 2023-24 NHL regular season.
The deal is Abate’s first NHL contract, having instead played the past two seasons on an AHL deal with the Providence Bruins. The physical forward has two goals and 10 points with 104 penalty minutes in 40 games with Providence, a year after scoring three goals and six points alongside 62 penalty minutes in 35 games last year.
Standing at 6-foot-1 and 198 pounds, Abate has five goals and 16 points in 75 career AHL contests. Abate was also part of the Bruins’ 2023 Buffalo Prospects Challenge roster. Abate is not expected to factor into Boston’s NHL plans, but does reward him for his work on an AHL-only deal.
Prior to turning pro, Abate spent one year with the NAHL’s Janesville jets before embarking on a two-year USHL run with Youngstown and Omaha.
Abate then played three years with the NCAA’s University of Nebraska-Omaha, registering 32 points in 85 games. During his time there, Abate was named to the NCHC all-academic and all-rookie teams during the 2019-20 season.
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A deeper look at the newest member of the Tampa Bay Lightning
Many around the league think that the biggest need for the Tampa Bay Lightning this season is defense, hence the reason they were often mentioned right alongside Noah Hanifin, the biggest name on trade market, right up until the Calgary Flame was traded to the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday night. So, of course general manager Julien BriseBois’ first move for the Bolts was to bolster their offensive ranks.
On Thursday, he sent Jack Thompson and a 2024 third-round pick to San Jose for forward Anthony Duclair and a 2025 seventh-round pick. Defense through superior offense might be the Lightning’s motto down the stretch. Duclair brings a history of goal scoring to the team and should enhance their middle-six scoring.
The 28-year-old forward is in the final season of a 3-year $9 million contract following a lost season in 2022-23 when he was limited to just 20 games after suffering an Achilles tendon injury that required surgery. He was traded to the Sharks on July 1 last summer and is scheduled to be an unrestricted free agent this July.
Despite the injury, Duclair still managed 2 goals and 7 assists in those 20 regular season games before adding another 11 points (4 goals, 7 assists) in 20 postseason games as the Panthers made their run to the Stanley Cup Final.
While the playoffs were undoubtedly exciting for him, the lack of games played was a bit of an unfortunate end to a successful stint in Florida. In the two seasons he spent with the Panthers before the injury, he put up 41 goals and 49 assists in 117 regular season games. He also had 1 goal and 2 assists in 14 playoff games. Oh, and one memorable moment against the Lightning in the 2021 playoffs:
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