Panthers, Barkov agree to 8-year extension with reported $10M AAV

The Florida Panthers agreed to an eight-year contract extension with captain Aleksander Barkov.

It carries an average annual value of $10 million, and the Panthers are paying more than $70 million of the total in signing bonuses, according to TSN's Pierre LeBrun.

Barkov won the Selke Trophy as the NHL's top defensive forward last season.

Over 50 games in 2021, the 26-year-old tied for ninth in the league with 26 goals and tied for 13th with 58 points. He ranked ninth in the NHL among forwards in average ice time, logging 20:56 per contest.

Barkov also posted stellar underlying numbers, authoring a 59.68 goals for percentage, a 60.86 expected goals for percentage, and a 60.16 scoring chances for percentage at five-on-five.

The Finnish center has one season left on his current contract, which carries a $5.9-million cap hit, according to CapFriendly. He signed that six-year pact with Florida in January 2016.

Barkov has spent his entire eight-year career with the Panthers, who drafted him second overall in 2013.