The Winnipeg Jets and right winger Patrik Laine have agreed to a two-year, $13.5 million contract, the team announced.
Laine, who was a restricted free agent, was on pace for superstardom and a huge payday after two seasons in the league. But last season raised some questions.
The 21-year-old had 36 goals and 64 points in his rookie season and 44 goals and 70 points in 2017-18. Last season, he finished with 30 goals and 50 points but had only nine goals after Dec. 1 and didn’t have more than four goals in any month other than November.
His first three seasons also saw his plus-minus go from plus-seven to plus-eight to minus-24, and his Corsi percentage go from 48.7 to 50.2 to 46.2.
Adding up his three seasons, however, Laine is only 21 points behind the man taken ahead of him in the 2016 draft, Auston Matthews, who signed a five-year, $58 million contract in February.