Chicago Blackhawks’ Alex DeBrincat won’t experience free agency, at least not for some time. Blackhawks announced on Thursday that they have signed DeBrincat to a three-year extension that will keep the 21-year-old winger with the organization through the 2022-23 season.
DeBrincat, who was set to become a restricted free agent next summer, will earn $6.4 million starting next season according to his new deal. The overall value of the extension stands at $19.2 million.
“It’s great news for everyone,” – said Blackhawks’ general manager Stan Bowman in a statement. “Congrats to Alex, first off. He deserves it. What a great first two seasons he’s had. I think he’s just scratching the surface. To score 40 goals in his second year, and I think he’s got a lot of great years ahead of him. … I think it was a deal that works both for us and for him and rewards him for his performance, and it sets us up well for where we’re headed.”
Alex DeBrincat is coming off an impressive season in which he played all 82 games and scored 41 goals while dishing 35 assists. The last Blackhawks’ player who scored 40 or more goals before turning 21 was Jeremy Roenick in the 1990-91 NHL season.
These excellent performances made Chicago act fast and tie up their talented winger long-term, which lined up with what DeBrincat eventually wanted.
“It’s nice to get it done this year,” – said DeBrincat. “It shows they have confidence in me. I didn’t want to be waiting around like a lot of the [restricted free agents] this year … I think from the start I wanted to get it done early and not really worry about it. When they came to offer us a contract, it was pretty easy decision to make, get it done now, and just focus on the season.”
DeBrincat was drafted 36th overall by Blackhawks in 2016, making his NHL debut the following year. He played a total of 164 NHL games over the course of the last two seasons, scoring 69 goals and providing 59 assists.
