Jordan Leopold, fresh off a senior season at Minnesota that included a national championship and a Hobey Baker Award, signed with the Calgary Flames yesterday. According to the Calgary Herald, the deal was for two years for a total of $1.825 million.
The breakdown of the deal includes a $625,000 signing bonus, $500,000 salary in his first season, and $700,000 in the second.
“It seems like every two weeks, there is something else that comes up,” said the 21-year old Leopold to the Herald. “Just two weeks ago, I was sitting with President Bush, talking to him and shaking hands. There’s been a lot of positive things that have happened. Things just keep coming. I think I need to sit down and take a long look at that.”
Leopold will have a good chance to play a lot in the NHL right out of the gate, considering Calgary’s desperate need for punch from the backline.
“We feel confident that he’ll have a place in this room at the beginning of next season,” Calgary GM Craig Button told the Herald. “We know that he makes us a better team.”
The Herald also reported that still-unsigned former Boston College star Chuck Kobasew decided to skip Calgary’s prospects camp.
Leopold’s agent is Neil Sheehy, a Minnesota native who represents numerous former Gophers. He played college hockey at Harvard, and played in the NHL with Calgary.
