On Thursday, the New Jersey Devils signed Swedish forward Jesper Bratt to an eight-year, $63 million contract extension. Bratt is one of the team’s promising young players.
Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet was the first person to report on the deal.
The deal, which will pay the 24-year-old an annual salary of $7.875 million, was officially announced by general manager Tom Fitzgerald. The contract begins with a salary of $10 million for the upcoming season and gradually decreases to $6 million for the following two years, 2030 and 2101.
Bratt was a restricted free agent last season and made $5.45 million. The Devils made the playoffs for the first time since 2018 thanks to his 32 goals and 41 assists. His career highs were 32 goals and a plus-14 rating.
“It was always a priority to keep Jesper Bratt here long term and both parties are thrilled that a deal was completed,” Fitzgerald said. “I value and commend the commitment Jesper made to this organization. We believe that he is a special player and a key member of our core group of talent who will contribute toward the team’s long-term success, and organizational goal of bringing the Stanley Cup back to New Jersey.”
Beginning in 2017-18, Bratt spent six seasons with the Devils. He is one of only ten players in the franchise’s history to score more than 70 points in consecutive seasons. He is also the first Devils player since Zach Parise to score at least 70 points in consecutive seasons (2008-09 to 2009-10) to do so.
In the playoffs, Bratt played poorly. In the first round, New Jersey beat the Rangers in seven games and lost to the Carolina Hurricanes in five games.
Bratt has the most career points for a player selected after the second round in the 2016 draft, with 102 goals and 174 assists.
The winger played in Sweden for two seasons before joining the NHL.