Canada

Blue Jackets sign Bjorkstrand to 5-year contract extension

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Columbus Blue Jackets have signed forward Oliver Bjorkstrand to a five-year contract extension worth $27 million.

The deal announced Wednesday will keep one of the team’s best young players in Columbus through the 2025-26 season. He had one season remaining on his current contract.

The 25-year-old Bjorkstrand led the team in goals (21), game-winning goals (five) and multi-point outings (11), and finished third in shots (162) despite missing 21 games due to injury in the pandemic-shortened 2019-20 season.

He has posted 65 goals and 68 assists in 246 career games with the Blue Jackets since making his NHL debut during the 2015-16 season. He has scored 20-plus goals in back-to-back seasons and has three straight seasons with at least 36 points. He also has six goals and six assists in 31 career playoff games.

“Oliver is a gifted player that has shown steady improvement throughout (his) career to this point, and we couldn’t be happier that he will be a Blue Jacket for a very long time,” general manager Jarmo Kekalainen said. “He is a dangerous offensive player, and we believe he will be an even more impactful player for us as he continues to develop and mature in this league.”

The native of Herning, Denmark, was selected by Columbus in the third round (89th overall) in 2013 NHL draft.

___

More AP NHL: https://apnews.com/NHL and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Articles You May Like

Wolf, Wranglers wrest Game 1 from Firebirds
Lightning head coach Jon Cooper apologizes for comments about goalies in ‘skirts’
NHL-worst Sharks win lottery, right to choose No. 1
Griffins take care of IceHogs, win first series since ’17
Wolves, Hurricanes announce affiliation agreement

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *