Senators sign Giroux to 3-year deal with $6.5M AAV

The Ottawa Senators have signed unrestricted free-agent forward Claude Giroux to a three-year deal with an average annual value of $6.5 million, the team announced Wednesday.

Giroux, 34, split the 2021-22 season between the Philadelphia Flyers and Florida Panthers. He put up 21 goals and 44 assists in 75 contests in 2021-22, and he was one of the biggest names on the free-agent market.

"I wouldn't sign here if I didn't think we had a chance to win the Cup," Giroux told TSN after the news broke. He added, "For me coming here, I'm just excited to play with young talent that likes to compete; they have character. I'm not saying we're going to win the Cup this year, but the plan is to build on it and have baby steps to that."

He spent 15 seasons in Philadelphia, and the Flyers moved him before the trade deadline shortly after he played his 1,000th career NHL game with the franchise.

Giroux potted three goals and 20 assists in 18 regular-season games with the Panthers and went on to score eight points in 10 playoff games before Florida was swept in the second round by the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Selected by the Flyers in the first round of the 2006 draft, Giroux has 923 points in 1,018 career contests.

"We're thrilled to add a player of Claude's calibre to our lineup," Senators general manager Pierre Dorion said in a news release. "He's an elite offensive talent with exceptional faceoff prowess and a player who maintains a strong work ethic. His leadership skills are arguably among his best assets. We've set out to bolster our roster this offseason and this addition is another important component in helping us achieve that. We're very happy to welcome Claude and his family home to Ottawa."

The Senators have made a series of eye-popping moves so far this offseason. Ottawa acquired two-time 40-goal scorer Alex DeBrincat last week and traded for veteran goaltender Cam Talbot on Tuesday.