The Pittsburgh Penguins have signed forward Carter Rowney to a two-year contract, it was announced today by executive vice president and general manager Jim Rutherford.
The two-way deal begins with the 2016-17 season and runs through the 2017-18 campaign, and has an average annual value of $612,500.
Rowney, 26, ranks second in scoring this season on WBS with 39 points in 58 games. He has already established career highs in goals (17), assists (22), points (39) and plus-minus (+22). His plus-22 leads the team and is tied for 10th best in the AHL.
A 6-foot-2, 208-pound forward, Rowney had a career game on Sunday afternoon, netting his first AHL hat trick in a 5-4 win against Hershey. That continued his strong run of 17 points (10G-7A) over his last 15 games dating to the beginning of February.
The native of Grande Prairie, Alberta established himself as a key member of WBS’ forward group last year, posting 31 points (10G-21A) in 63 games, including 14 points (4G-10A) over his last 16 regular-season contests.
An undrafted free agent, Rowney has played the last three years with WBS on an AHL deal. He’s played in 145 regular-season games with WBS, producing 29 goals, 45 assists, 74 points and a plus-34. He’s added six points (2G-4A) in 15 playoff games.
Since turning pro in 2013, Rowney has also played in four AHL games with the Abbotsford Heat (scoring one goal) and 44 games with the ECHL’s Wheeling Nailers, where he had 51 points (14G-37A).
Rowney played four years of collegiate hockey at the University of North Dakota from 2009-13, helping his club win three WCHA titles and twice earning a selection onto the WCHA All-Academic Team. Rowney was an alternate captain as a senior in ’12-13.