The Tampa Bay Lightning appear to have their backup in place.
The club has reportedly agreed to terms on a two-year contract extension with Peter Budaj worth $2.05 million, according to TSN's Bob McKenzie.
The NHL is the midst of a transaction freeze while the Vegas Golden Knights choose their roster, and while Budaj was left unprotected by the Lightning, his agent, Rolly Hedges, confirmed the agreement with Tampa Bay, one that will likely be made official after the expansion draft.
"There was great interest in Peter coming back," Hedges told Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times on Monday. "He likes the Tampa Bay area. He likes the teammates. Peter has some young children, and his priority was being in Tampa and living in an area that was comfortable for him and his wife and his children. They enjoyed it there."
Budaj appeared in seven games for the Lightning after being acquired from Los Angeles in the Ben Bishop trade, posting a record of 3-1-0 with a .898 save percentage. Prior to that, he filled in admirably for the injured Jonathan Quick, going 27-20-3 with a .917 save percentage with the Kings.
He'll serve as backup to Andrei Vasilevskiy, and the pair will cost $4.525 million against the cap, which is tremendous value at that position in today's NHL.
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