Predators re-sign Saros to 4-year, $20M deal

The Nashville Predators re-signed goaltender Juuse Saros to a four-year contract with an average annual value of $5 million, the team announced Monday.

The 26-year-old was a restricted free agent and had filed for arbitration.

Saros has played with the Predators for the last five seasons since being selected by the club in the fourth round of the 2013 NHL Draft. For the majority of his career, he served as the backup to Pekka Rinne but took over as the primary starter over the past two campaigns.

"Juuse has proven himself as one of the best young goaltenders in the NHL, and we are very pleased to have him remain our No. 1 goaltender for years to come," general manager David Poile said.

"Juuse gives our team a chance to win in every game he plays, and we feel confident that with him leading the tandem we've established with David Rittich, our goaltenders will be a large part of our success in 2021-22."

Last season, Saros put together a 21-11-1 record alongside an impressive .927 save percentage and 2.28 goals-against average. He ranked first among all goalies with 24.64 goals saved above average at five-on-five and ranked fourth with a .868 high-danger save percentage.

The Finland native has appeared in 161 career games, managing a .920 save percentage and 2.51 goals-against average. He's projected to be the team's starting goalie for the foreseeable future after Rinne announced his retirement early in the offseason and with top prospect Yaroslav Askarov working his way up to the NHL.