Blue Jackets keep Patrik Laine with four-year, $34.8 million deal

The Columbus Blue Jackets announced Friday that restricted free agent Patrik Laine is staying with the team on a four-year, $34.8 million deal.

"One of our priorities this summer was signing Patrik Laine to a contract extension," Blue Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekalainen said in a statement. "He is a special player, one of the truly elite goal scorers in the National Hockey League, and he has fit in extremely well with our group since his arrival. He is an integral part of the team we are building in Columbus, and we couldn't be happier that he will continue to be a Blue Jacket for the foreseeable future."

Laine, 24, was the second overall pick in the 2016 NHL Draft and made his debut later that year with the Winnipeg Jets. He earned All-Star honors as a rookie and racked up 134 points in his first two seasons with Winnipeg, but struggled to continue to produce in the next two seasons. During his fifth year in the NHL, Laine was traded to the Blue Jackets in a deal involving Pierre-Luc Dubois and Jack Roslovic.

Last season, Laine bounced back to record 56 points (26 goals and 30 assists) in 56 games. While he missed a significant chunk of the season due to an oblique strain, Laine still finished the year with the second-most goals on the team, just two behind Oliver Bjorkstrand for the club's lead.

Earlier in the offseason, Columbus made a significant splash by adding six-time All-Star forward Johnny Gaudreau. That deal — worth $68.25 million over seven years — raised doubts about the team's ability to retain Laine. The pair of contracts put the Blue Jackets more than $6 million over the salary cap, so they needed to make moves to clear space are likely on the way. 

Later in the day, the Blue Jackets traded Bjorkstrand  to the Seattle Kraken in exchange for two draft picks. The move saved Columbus $5.25 million in cap space. Bjorkstrand has four years left on his five-year, $27 million contract.