Hayden Hodgson didn't have an NHL contract at this time last year and was not in Flyers training camp.
He really wasn't on the radar of the Flyers.
"Hayden Hodgson emerged out of nowhere," general manager Chuck Fletcher said May 3 at his end-of-the-season press conference. "I didn't even know who he was until October."
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On Monday, about three and a half weeks before training camp, Hodgson signed a new two-year, $1.6 million contract with the Flyers. The deal is a two-way contract in Year 1 and a one-way contract in Year 2, while the average annual value of it is $800,000.
This time, the 26-year-old winger will be in the big club's camp and looking to open some more eyes.
Playing at AHL affiliate Lehigh Valley last season, Hodgson signed a one-year, $750,000 deal with the Flyers in March. He was a restricted free agent this offseason. When his new contract expires, he'll be unrestricted.
NHL
With the Flyers' 2021-22 season going awry in January, Hodgson saw an audition in March. He turned heads in his NHL debut, recording a goal, an assist and a plus-3 rating as the Flyers upset the Blues, 5-2, on the road. The 6-foot-2, 207-pounder showed his ability to make things happen around the net with good size and instincts.
In six games for the Flyers, Hodgson finished with three points, 10 shots and a fight while playing 13:12 minutes per game.
When he was inked to make his NHL debut, he was tied for the Phantoms' team lead in goals with 18 and had 29 points through 44 games. He finished with 19 goals and 31 points in 46 games at Lehigh Valley.
The season prior, he played for two different teams in the ECHL.
Hodgson is projected to open the 2022-23 season with the Phantoms. He was the Flyers' final RFA to re-sign before training camp.
Owen Tippett, Zack MacEwen, Morgan Frost, Wade Allison, Isaac Ratcliffe, Tanner Laczynski, Jackson Cates and Linus Hogberg were RFAs that also inked new deals this summer.
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