Matt Duchene signed a four-year, $18 million contract with the Dallas Stars on Thursday. It has an average annual value of $4.5 million.
The 34-year-old forward had 82 points (30 goals, 52 assists) in 82 regular-season games for the Stars this season, leading them in points, and had six points (one goal, five assists) in 18 Stanley Cup Playoff games.
He could have become an unrestricted free agent on July 1.
“I want to keep playing,” Duchene said on May 30. “I think, like I said last year, I’m a pretty open book. I’d love to stay here and make it work. … I believe in this group and I want to be here. I know how close we are. I don’t take that lightly.
“I’ve spent most of my career watching first, second, third round, fourth round. Getting the chance to actually [play in the third round] for two straight years … You know the opportunity you have, and as you get older and you go a lot of years without making the playoffs or losing out, you know you’ve got a lot more behind you than ahead of you. You appreciate it more and it hurts more, it hurts a lot more.”
Selected by the Colorado Avalanche in the first round (No. 3) of the 2009 NHL Draft, Duchene has 891 points (371 goals, 520 assists) in 1,138 regular-season games for the Avalanche, Ottawa Senators, Columbus Blue Jackets, Nashville Predators and Stars and 37 points (13 goals, 24 assists) in 69 postseason games.
“We are thrilled to have Matt back with our organization,” Stars general manager Jim Nill said. “As our team’s leading scorer last season, he helped to solidify our forward group while also providing invaluable leadership off the ice and in the community. The fit with Matt and our team has been seamless from the start, and we’re looking forward to continuing to pursue our shared goal of bringing a championship to Dallas.”
NHL.com independent correspondent Taylor Baird contributed to this report
