Stars sign Wyatt Johnston to a $42M, 5-year extension at same time they get Mikko Rantanen

FRISCO, Texas (AP) — The Dallas Stars signed 21-year-old center Wyatt Johnston to a $42 million, five-year contract extension at the same time that they made the biggest deal at the NHL's trade deadline in acquiring Mikko Rantanen.

Johnston's deal on Friday was overshadowed by the Stars getting Rantanen from the Carolina Hurricanes and signing him to a $96 million, eight-year contract extension. But keeping the young center once mentored by Joe Pavelski also is a significant move for Dallas.

General manager Jim Nill said when talking with reporters after the trade deadline that it was the right time to finish the extension that had been in the works since early this season. Johnston could have become a restricted free agent on July 1.

“We just thought this was maybe the perfect time to bring it together,” Nill said. “We're adding a major piece, Wyatt's a big part of our team and we wanted to make sure that he could fit into the right slot also. So it was just the right time for it all.”

The extension that begins next season has an average annual value of $8.4 million through the 2029-30 season. Rantanen and Johnston have the same representatives.

Going into Saturday night's game at Edmonton, Johnston had played in every Stars game since his debut in the 2022-23 opener — 226 regular-season games and 38 more in the playoffs. He was their top goal scorer last season and has 165 points (79 goals, 86 assists) in the regular season, plus 22 more (14 goals, eight assists) when Dallas made it to the Western Conference Final in each of his first two seasons.

His third career hat trick last Sunday against St. Louis was part of an eight-game points streak during which Johnston has eight goals and six assists. He had 59 points (23 goals, 36 assists) in the first 62 games this season.

This is the first NHL season Johnston is living on his own. He lived with Pavelski and his family during his first two seasons before the 18-season veteran retired last summer just short of his 40th birthday.

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