Unrestricted free agent defenceman Ethan Bear has been skating with the Washington Capitals and it appears that he'll be officially joining the organization very soon.
According to PuckPedia, the Washington Capitals will officially sign Ethan Bear to a two-year contract worth $2.0625 million AAV in the next day or two after the roster freeze ends, which will happen at 12:01 a.m. ET on December 28th.
"Expecting that Ethan Bear's #ALLCAPS contract will be finalized & registered in next day or two, and that it will be a 2 year deal with a cap hit of $2.0625M."
The 26-year-old appeared in 61 games with the Canucks during the 2023-24 season where he had 16 points (three goals, 13 assists), 25 penalty minutes and was a plus-six.
Bear was linked with a return to Vancouver nearly all summer and through the first month of the season, but once Patrik Allvin went out and added Nikita Zadorov, there wasn't any room left cap-wise or a spot for him on the blue line.
Ethan Bear will make his return to Vancouver on March 16th when the Washington Capitals take on the Canucks at Rogers Arena.