THUNDER BAY – The Superior International Junior Hockey League announced Saturday that former SIJHL standout netminder Carter Hutton made his National Hockey League debut this evening with the Chicago Blackhawks.
Hutton, a former SIJHL top goaltender award recipient, faced 28 shots in a game Chicago dropped a 3-1 decision on the road to the St. Louis Blues.
The Blackhawks, who earlier clinched the President’s Trophy as NHL regular season champions, had sat out 10 regulars from their line-up opting to rest them in the club’s final contest heading into the playoffs.
Hutton had previously earned NHL call-ups with Chicago, Philadelphia and San Jose and had dressed for a number of games in which he served as the back-up.
He starred in the SIJHL for the Fort William North Stars in the 2005-06 campaign where he led his club to a Bill Salonen Cup championship as well as a Dudley-Hewitt Cup crown before eventually falling in overtime in semifinal action at the Royal Bank Cup to the eventual RBC champion Burnaby Express.
His regular season numbers in 2005-06 saw him go an impressive 33-1 along with a league-best 1.84 goals-against average and .926 save percentage. He also set a SIJHL record for shutouts in a season with 10, which still stands today.
Hutton was a perfect 7-0 in the playoffs that year as well with a 1.57 GAA and a .921 save mark along with two shutouts.
He now becomes the second SIJHL alumnus to play in a NHL game, joining Pittsburgh Penguins defenceman Robert Bortuzzo in this elite group.
Bortuzzo was also a member of that 2005-06 North Stars squad.
