Cole Caufield goes pro immediately, signs entry-level deal with Canadiens

Just days after Wisconsin lost in the NCAA Tournament, top prospect Cole Caufield is going pro.

The Wisconsin Badgers were the No. 1 seed in the East Regional of the NCAA Men’s Hockey Tournament, and their season ended with a loss to Bemidji State Friday. On Saturday, Big Ten Player of the Year and Hobey Baker Award finalist Cole Caufield signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Montreal Canadiens. Here are the terms of the deal.

The agreement will see Caufield earn $700,000 at the NHL level in 2020-21 and $832,500 at the NHL level in both 2021-22 and 2022-23. Caufield will also receive signing bonus payments of $92,500 in all three seasons and will earn $70,000 per season at the AHL level. The deal also contains performance bonuses up to a maximum of $300,000 in 2021-22 and up to a maximum of $850,000 in 2022-23.

In 31 games for the Badgers this season, Caufield led Division I with 30 goals as he tallied 52 points. As a freshman in 2019-20, he had 36 points in 36 games. During his time in the U.S. National Development Team Program (U-17 and U-18 teams) he was a record-setting scorer. Montreal drafted him 15th overall in 2019, as concerns about his size (5-foot-7, 165 pounds) dropped him down the board. Said concerns have not been backed up by what he did in the Big Ten.

Caufield is likely to start in the AHL with the Laval Rockets once he completes mandatory quarantine. His NHL debut may happen in short order.