The Columbus Blue Jackets have signed defenseman Ryan Murray to a two-year contract extension, the team announced on Thursday. The deal carries an AAV of $2.85 million, reports Aaron Portzline of the Columbus Post Dispatch.
The 22-year-old 2nd overall draft pick is finishing the third year of his entry-level contract this season and has shown marked improvement this season. That helps to make this bridge deal through two RFA seasons make a lot of sense for the young defender.
Through 55 games this season he’s tied his career-high for goals with four and is four points shy of his career-high in points. Both of those marks were set in his rookie season, when he logged 66 games for Columbus. Injuries derailed his sophomore campaign, when he was only able to find his way into 12 games.
He’s clearly a part of the team’s future on the blue line along with the recently acquired Seth Jones, who Murray has been paired with since the acquisition. Columbus also has a set of highly touted draft picks coming up through the system including Zach Werenski, Gabriel Carlsson and Ryan Collins.
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