New York Islanders will not leave another captain to walk out the door. After losing the previous captain John Tavares to free agency in 2018, Islanders were facing the same scenario this summer with current captain Anders Lee. But unlike with Tavares, Islanders managed to find common ground with Lee and signed him to a seven-year deal.
Islanders confirmed the deal on Monday but did not disclose the financial term of the agreement that will keep Lee with the organization through 2025/26 NHL season. The reports, however, indicate that the 28-year-old winger will earn around $7 million on an annual basis.
“Today is a wonderful day,” – Lee told reporters during a conference call. “My wife and I, we couldn’t be happier. This is the place we always wanted to be and saw ourselves. We couldn’t be more thrilled than we are right now.”
Lee played all 82 games in the past season, contributing with 28 goals and career-high 23 assists while helping Islanders to their first postseason appearance in three years.
“Obviously it took a little bit of time, but that’s just how these things work,” – he added. “There were some up and downs, but at the day I knew we’d figure this all out together. … We just kept that communication going the whole time. “
Anders Lee made his NHL debut with the New York Islanders back in 2012, but spent some time in AHL, before finally breaking into the rotation in 2014/15 season. Since then, Lee established himself as one of the most important pieces of this Islanders team.
Lee’s NHL career averages include 425 games played in which he scored 152 goals and dished 106 assists.
