The Lightning have once again dipped into free agency, this time signing center Dominic Moore to a two-year contract.
Moore split time between the Florida Panthers and the Montreal Canadiens last season, and was part of Montreal’s playoff run. The question that comes to mind with this move is if it effectively stops James Wright from playing in the NHL next season? It certainly heightens the third-line competition.
Press release from the team is below the fold.
LIGHTNING SIGN FREE AGENT CENTER DOMINIC MOORE
TAMPA BAY – The Tampa Bay Lightning have signed free agent center Dominic Moore to a two-year contract today, Vice President and General Manager Steve Yzerman announced.
“Dominic’s skating ability, strength on face-offs and versatility will be a great edition to our line up,” Yzerman said. “We’re pleased to welcome him to the organization.”
Moore, 6-foot, 196 pounds, has played in 374 career NHL games with the New York Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Minnesota Wild, Toronto Maple Leafs, Buffalo Sabres, Florida Panthers and Montreal Canadiens. He has amassed 45 goals, nine power-play goals, three shorthanded goals, three game-winning goals, 128 points and 243 penalty minutes. Moore has also played in 23 career Stanley Cup Playoff games with New York and Montreal
A native of Thornhill, Ontario, Moore split last season between the Panthers and Canadiens, recording 10 goals and 28 points in 69 games while averaging just less than 15 minutes of ice time per contest. He ranked 18th in the NHL among forwards who took 600 face-offs or more, winning 365 of 663 draws for a 55.0 percentage. Moore was traded from Florida to Montreal on February 11 and went on to play in 19 Stanley Cup Playoff games with the Canadiens.
Moore went on to play in 19 postseason games with Montreal in 2010, recording four goals and five points. He ranked tied for second on the team in plus/minus with a plus-1, tied for third on the team for goals and fifth among forwards in average ice time with 14:33.
A former forward at Harvard University, Moore played four seasons for the Crimson, skating in 128 career games. He recorded 64 goals and 83 assists with 135 penalty minutes. Moore finished his college career 11th on Harvard’s all-time scoring list and 10th on the school’s all-time goals list. While with the Crimson he was named the most valuable player and was named to the ECAC All-Tournament Team during his senior season. Moore was also named the Ivy League Rookie of the Year during his freshman season while also helping Harvard to the Ivy League Championship.
Moore was drafted by the New York Rangers in the third round, 95th overall, of the 2000 NHL Entry Draft.
