MINNESOTA WILD SIGNS PAIR OF FREE AGENT DEFENSEMEN

SCOTT FERGUSON AND KURTIS FOSTER EACH AGREE TO TERMS WITH TEAM

SAINT PAUL/MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – Minnesota Wild President and General Manager Doug Risebrough has announced the National Hockey League (NHL) club has signed free agent defensemen Scott Ferguson and Kurtis Foster to contracts.



Foster, 23 (11/24/81), spent the 2004-05 season with the Cincinnati Mighty Ducks of the American Hockey League (AHL), posting 42 points (17-25=42) and 95 penalty minutes (PIM) in 78 games and ranking fourth on the team in scoring. The Carp, Ontario-native was the top Cincinnati defenseman in goals, assists and points, while skating to a +16 rating. Foster also added five points (2-3=5) to go along with 28 PIM in nine playoff games.



Te 6-foot-5, 235-pound Foster was selected in the second round (40th overall) by the Calgary Flames in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft and has tallied one assist in five NHL games.



Ferguson, 32 (1/6/73), recorded six points (1-5=6) and 80 penalty minutes (PIM) in 52 games with the Edmonton Oilers during the 2003-04 season. His five assists tied his career-high and he ranked fifth on the Oilers in PIM. The 6-foot-1, 195-pound blueliner set career-highs for games played (78), points (3-5=8) and PIM (120) with Edmonton in 2002-03.



“Scott's career has been typified by his competitive drive and feisty play,” said Risebrough. “We were looking for that element to strengthen our team, especially in this new era of additional games with divisional rivals.”



Ferguson has collected 21 points (7-14=21) and 288 PIM in 203 career NHL contests during six seasons with Edmonton and Anaheim. Ferguson skated in his 200th career NHL game at Detroit on February 16, 2004. The Oilers originally signed the Camrose, Alberta-native as a free agent on June 2, 1994.



Per club policy, terms of the contracts were not disclosed.