Carter Hutton Autographed Card

I often say that goalies nowadays are not like in the past; there aren't a half-dozen on which you can rely to never have a bad season, save for Henrik Lundqvist (except for his Octobers) and Pekka Rinne. Well, Rinne's not having the best season of his career, which means Carter Hutton's outplayed him, though he's appeared in some 35 less games, so the sample size is to be considered.

Hutton's statistics are superb this year, with a 2.17 GAA and .922 save percentage and 2 shutouts in 10 games, and a stellar 0.33 and .967 in his three starts prior to last night's game versus the best offense in the league, the Dallas Stars, which he forced into overtime, stopping 29 of 32 shots after a 22-save shutout performance against the Florida Panthers on Saturday.

Now, I am by no means comparing Rinne and Hutton's careers, nor do I think that Hutton has reached his prime at 30 years old and will dominate the NHL for years to come; but the Nashville Predators are legitimate contenders this year, and head coach Peter Laviolette may have to make a hard decision come springtime.

The undrafted Hutton signed on with two different teams (the Philadelphia Flyers and San Jose Sharks) before getting his first taste of NHL action with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2012-13, suiting up for a single loss before the Hawks let him go and the Preds came calling.

I have a Score card of his that he signed showing him with the Flyers while listing him as a Shark, but I can't find it at the moment, so I'll instead feature him via this card he signed last season, showing him in the Sharks' best white (away) uniform (though I would have taken the number on the front of the jersey off), from Panini's 2010-11 All Goalies set (card #75), signed in blue sharpie:

I like that his equipment is a rag-tag mix of different manufacturers, with a Sher-Wood (originally a stick-making company from Sherbrooke, Québec) glove, Bauer (originally an equipment manufacturer specializing in helmets and skates) stick, and Vaughn blocker (a taste I used to share in my playing days).