LaRose signs 2-year contract

Canes forward Chad LaRose has signed a two-year contract that will pay him $1.5 million next year and $1.9 million in the second season, general manager Jim Rutherford said today. LaRose, an unrestricted free agent, had a one-year contract last season that paid him $875,000. Unable to reach an early agreement with the Canes, he tested the NHL's free-agent market for two days before re-signing with Carolina. "This works out fine," Rutherford said of the contract. "It's the same contract that we gave Jussi Jokinen. It makes sense within our structure and is justifiable to both sides." Jokinen, a restricted free agent forward, also received a two-year contract that will pau him a total of $3.4 million.