The Winnipeg Jets signed restricted free agent forward Patrik Laine to a two-year contract worth $13.5 million, or $6.75 million per season. This contract carries him through the 2020-21 season.
Patrik Laine signs a two-year deal with #NHLJets carrying a $6.75M AAV. He travelled back to Finland today from Switzerland, where he'd been skating with SC Bern, and will soon be en route to Manitoba.
— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) September 27, 2019
Patrik Laine Signs With the Winnipeg Jets
Over his short three-year NHL career so far, Laine has played exclusively for the Jets. He has put up 110 goals and 74 assists for 184 career points in 237 career games. He was originally drafted in the first round, second overall of the 2016 NHL draft by the Jets.
Last season, the Finnish native scored 30 goals and 20 assists for 50 points in a full 82 games played. He also added 42 minutes in penalties. His possession numbers were 46.2 percent Corsi and a relative Corsi of -3.5. In 6 playoff games this season, Laine also had 3 goals and 1 assist in a first-round exit.
What This Means for the Future
Laine had a rough season in 2018-19 scoring only 50 points. While he scored 30 goals this season, 18 of them came in November alone, meaning there were five months where he totaled 12 goals. Despite this, Laine is an exciting young talent that will most likely bounce back next season to the offensive producer that everyone has come to expect. Laine began to show this in the playoffs where he had 0.5 goals per game, albeit, in a small sample size. He is a key piece to the roster moving forward, and to have him on a new contract is good for the team.
Laine is an elite player on the power play. Of his 30 goals this season, he scored exactly half of them on the man advantage, and the other 15 at even strength. Laine adds the skill that all teams desire on the powerplay, and this is where he tends to work best.
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