The Pittsburgh Penguins and defenseman Olli Maatta avoided restricted free agency Friday, as the 21-year-old blueliner signed a six-year contract extension through 2021-22.
The Pens announced the deal is worth $24.498 million, which breaks down to an average annual value of $4.083 million.
The 2012 first-round pick is enjoying a strong season with six goals and 10 assists in 53 games to go along with a plus-18 rating, which ranks him behind only the Florida Panthers' Brian Campbell and the St. Louis Blues' Colton Parayko among defensemen.
As seen in this graphic, courtesy of Penguins PR, the Finnish star has been among the most productive rearguards from his draft class thus far:
Maatta is in the midst of his third NHL season, and he was limited to just 20 games in 2014-15 due to the combination of a shoulder injury and the removal of a cancerous tumor from his thyroid.
He has bounced back to enjoy perhaps the best season of his career to this point, though, and the Pens subsequently decided to invest heavily in his future.
Maatta is playing first-pairing minutes alongside ...
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Article written by Mike Chiari
Olli Maatta, Penguins Agree to New Contract: Latest Details, Comments, Reaction
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