Defenseman Brendan Mikkelson accepted the qualifying offer from the Anaheim Ducks and signed a one-year deal, the team announced today.
Eric Stephens of the Orange County Register has the details of the two-way contract:
Mikkelson, 23, will make $687,500, or 10 percent above the $625,000 NHL salary he was signed for last season. It is a two-way contract so his American Hockey League salary will be pro-rated to $62,500 but he will not have to pass through waivers if he were sent down.
Arthur from Anaheim Calling analyzed Mikkelson as follows:
Mikkelson's toolkit has always been that of a Top 4 defenseman, and while his issues were attributed to adjusting to Carlyle's system in 08-09, he was clearly having consistency issues last year. I've often called it a case of Dr. Mikkel and Mr. Hyde, which is truly frustrating because Dr. Mikkel is a damn good player, but it got to the point where the good doctor couldn't even show up for two consecutive shifts. He's 23, so if he blossoms (but doesn't blossom too much) in 10-11, the Ducks can get him on an affordable contract for the rest of his RFA. If he takes any longer, I'd suspect a trade, with him (annoyingly) becoming a Top 4 elsewhere.
Mikkelson was drafted by the Ducks in the second round in 2005, and has appeared in 62 NHL games over the past two seasons.