Mathew Barzal agreed to an eight-year contract with the New York Islanders on Tuesday. Financial terms were not announced for the contract, which begins next season.
The 25-year-old enter is in the final season of a three-year contract he agreed to Jan. 9, 2021, and could have become a restricted free agent after the season.
“I love it here. I genuinely do,” Barzal said. “I think that anyone who plays here knows that it’s one of the top places to play in the League. From the practice rink, UBS [Arena]the boys in the room, (general manager) Lou [Lamoriello] being here, a fresh coaching staff, the city itself, 30 minutes from New York City. The lifestyle is elite. I’ve loved it here literally every minute. There’s no other place I’d rather be.”
Barzal said he never really entertained the idea of playing elsewhere.
“I just love it here and never had any talks with anyone about going anywhere else, doing anything else, playing this year out,” he said. “It was about wanting to get signed, wanting to commit to the boys and this organization. Just the commitment to this organization and the guys in this room. I’m so happy I got to spend eight years with a lot of these guys. “
Video: Mathew Barzal Agrees to Eight-Year Contract
Lamoriello said his goal was to have a contract in place before the Islanders open the season Oct. 13 against the Florida Panthers.
“I think if we didn’t get it done before the season, it would have lingered,” Lamoriello said. “It becomes a distraction. I don’t like distractions.”
Barzal tied forward Brock Nelson for the New York lead last season with 59 points (15 goals, 44 assists) in 73 games. He has led or tied for the Islanders lead in scoring in each of his five full NHL seasons.
New York (37-35-10) missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season for the first time since Barzal was a rookie in 2017-18, finishing 16 points behind the Washington Capitals for the second wild card from the Eastern Conference. Barry Trotz was fired as coach on May 9 after four seasons and replaced by associate Lane Lambert on May 16.
Lamoriello is confident Barzal can be even better during the life of the contract.
“I’ve seen him develop his game each and every year,” Lamoriello said. “There’s no question that he’s improved his game without the puck. He knows he has a way to go in that area and he’s committed to that and our coaching staff continues to work with him on that.
“He has the ability to raise his game and I think… it’s unlimited what his skills are.”
Selected by the Islanders in the first round (No. 16) of the 2015 NHL Draft, Barzal has 311 points (91 goals, 220 assists) in 362 regular-season games and 38 points (13 goals, 25 assists) in 49 playoff games. . He won the Calder Trophy voted as NHL rookie of the year in 2017-18, and played in the NHL All-Star Game in 2019 and 2020.
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