The Colorado Avalanche Hockey Club announced today that the team has signed defenseman Fedor Tyutin to a one-year contract for the 2016-17 season. In addition, the Avalanche also announced the signings of forwards Reid Petryk and Trent Vogelhuber to two-year contracts, and defenseman Ryan Stanton , goaltender Jeremy Smith and forwards Turner Elson , Jim O’Brien , Mike Sislo and Joe Whitney to one-year deals.

Tyutin, 32, has totaled 251 points (54g/197a) and 510 penalty minutes in 803 career games over 12 NHL seasons with the New York Rangers and Columbus Blue Jackets. He has spent the past eight years with Columbus, where he recorded 185 points (39g/146a) in 553 games. His 553 games are the most by a defenseman in Blue Jackets history. The 6-foot-2, 221-pound blueliner notched three points (1g/2a) in 61 contests with Columbus last season.

Selected No. 40 overall by the Rangers in the second round of the 2001 Entry Draft, Tyutin (FEH-duhr T'YOO-tihn) made his NHL debut during the 2003-04 campaign where he went on to register seven points (2g/5a) in 25 games. Acquired by Columbus prior to the 2008-09 season, Tyutin recorded a career-high 34 points (9g/25a) in his first year in Ohio's capital city.

The Izhevsk, Russia, native represented his home country at three Olympics (2006, 2010, 2014) and three world championships (2008, 2011, 2013), winning a gold medal in 2008. He also won gold with Russia at the 2002 and 2003 IIHF World Junior Championships and at the 2001 IIHF Under-18 World Championship.





Elson, 23, made his NHL debut for Calgary in the 2015-16 season finale, tallying an assist in the Flames’ 2-1 victory at Minnesota on April 9. He spent the majority of the year with the Stockton Heat (AHL), where he recorded 30 points (14g/16a) in 63 games. The 5-foot-11, 180-pound left wing shared the team lead with three short-handed goals.

Originally signed by Calgary as a free agent on Sept. 22, 2011, Elson played four seasons of junior hockey for the Red Deer Rebels of the Western Hockey League from 2009-13. In 2013-14, the St. Albert, Alberta, native split his first full professional season between Alaska (ECHL) and Abbotsford (AHL), helping the Alaska Aces win the Kelly Cup as league champions.

O’Brien, 27, was Ottawa’s first-round pick (29th overall) in the 2007 Entry Draft. He has appeared in 67 career NHL games with the Senators and New Jersey Devils, tallying 12 points (8g/4a). The 6-foot-3, 195-pound center has also dressed in seven playoff contests, notching one assist. He skated in four games for New Jersey this past season (0g/0a) while dressing in 56 games for the AHL’s Albany Devils (19g/19a).

A native of Maplewood, Minnesota, O’Brien helped the Binghamton Senators (AHL) win the Calder Cup championship in 2010-11. Prior to turning pro, he played one season at the University of Minnesota and two seasons with the Seattle Thunderbirds of the Western Hockey League. O’Brien, who was part of the United States National Team Development Program, represented Team USA at the 2009 IIHF World Junior Championship and won gold medals at the 2006 and 2007 IIHF World Under-18 Championship.

Petryk, 23, has spent the past two seasons in the Avalanche’s minor league system, playing with the San Antonio Rampage (AHL) in 2015-16 after splitting the 2014-15 campaign between the AHL’s Lake Erie Monsters and ECHL’s Fort Wayne Komets. He recorded 37 points (15g/22a) in 72 games for the Rampage last season. Prior to turning pro, the 6-foot-1, 200-pound center played five years in the Western Hockey League, capping off his junior career by helping the Edmonton Oil Kings win the 2014 Memorial Cup.

Sislo, 28, split the 2015-16 campaign between the New Jersey Devils and their AHL affiliate in Albany, N.Y. He dressed in 18 games for New Jersey, tallying four points (3g/1a). Sislo scored his first two NHL goals in the same game, March 17, 2016 against the Minnesota Wild at the Prudential Center.

The Superior, Wisconsin, native led the Albany Devils in goals (27) and finished second in points (53) while appearing in 57 games. He scored 14 goals on the power play, tops among all AHL players. The 5-foot-11, 195-pound right wing added seven points (2g/5a) in nine playoff contests.

After a four-year college career at the University of New Hampshire (Hockey East), Sislo signed with New Jersey on April 6, 2011. He has totaled five points (3g/2a) in 42 career NHL games.

Smith, 27, split this past season between the American Hockey League’s Iowa Wild and Providence Bruins. He posted an 18-9-4 record with a 2.52 goals-against average, .921 save percentage and one shutout in 43 combined games between the two teams. His .921 save percentage finished ninth among AHL goaltenders.

Selected by Nashville in the second round (54th overall) of the 2007 Entry Draft, Smith is entering his eighth professional season this fall. In 2014-15, he finished third among AHL netminders in Sv% (.933) and fourth in GAA (2.05) for Providence. He made his pro debut in 2009-10, helping the Cincinnati Cyclones capture the ECHL’s Kelly Cup while earning Co-MVP honors along the way. Internationally, the Dearborn, Michigan, native backstopped Team USA to a fourth-place finish at the 2008 IIHF World Junior Championship in the Czech Republic.

Stanton, 26, has appeared in 120 career NHL games—including one contest with the Washington Capitals this past season—recording 27 points (4g/23a). The St. Albert, Alberta, native spent most of the 2015-16 campaign with the Hershey Bears (AHL), notching 16 points (4g/12a) in 64 regular season games and five points (3g/2a) in 21 playoff contests.

Originally signed by Chicago as a free agent on March 12, 2010, Stanton made his NHL debut for the Blackhawks in the 2012-13 season finale. He was claimed on waivers by Vancouver on Sept. 30, 2013 and spent the entire 2013-14 and 2014-15 seasons with the Canucks. The 6-foot-2, 196-pound blueliner played four-plus seasons with the Moose Jaw Warriors (WHL) before making his pro debut with the Rockford Ice Hogs (AHL) in 2010.

Vogelhuber, 27, helped the Lake Erie Monsters capture the 2016 Calder Cup as American Hockey League champions. The 6-foot-2, 195-pound right wing tallied 27 points (11g/16a) in 70 regular-season games and added seven points (2g/5a) in 17 playoff contests. Selected by Columbus in the seventh round (211th overall) of the 2007 NHL Entry Draft, the Dublin, Ohio, native has spent the last four years in the AHL after a four-year career at Miami (Ohio) University.

Whitney, 28, spent the 2015-16 season with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers (AHL) after signing as a free agent with the New York Islanders on July 2, 2015. He tallied 33 points (14g/19a) in 36 games for the Tigers before suffering a season-ending injury on Jan. 15 at Portland. Whitney was named to the Atlantic Division roster for the 2016 AHL All-Star Classic, marking the third straight year he’s been selected to the AHL All-Star Game.

Originally signed by New Jersey as a free agent on May 1, 2013, Whitney has appeared in five career NHL games with the Devils, tallying one goal (1g/0a). He scored his first NHL goal on Dec. 31, 2014 at Detroit. The 5-foot-6, 170-pound right wing played four seasons with the Albany Devils (AHL) from 2011-15, where he was the franchise’s all-time leading scorer. A native of Reading, Mass., Whitney played four seasons at Boston College, helping the Eagles win two NCAA championships (2008 and 2010).