Anaheim Ducks re-sign veteran centre Saku Koivu to one-year contract -NHL Update
Anaheim Ducks are going through some turbulent times as they failed to make the playoffs for the second time straight, putting a lot of the management’s jobs on the line. In a move to secure their run for the next season, Ducks have given Saku Koivu another
chance to achieve his goal of getting a Stanley Cup by awarding him a one-year deal.
Koivu signed the deal on Wednesday, May 9, 2012 in Anaheim.
"I want to win," Koivu said during a conference call. "At this point in my career that's the No.1 priority and in talking with Bob and hearing his plan ... I'm confident they're going to make a push. With the core group of young players we have, the future
looks bright.”
The contract is believed to be worth $3 million, a boost from his previous $2.5 million-a-year deal with the Anaheim Ducks that he signed after leaving the Montreal Canadiens, a team for which he played 13 straight seasons.
The deal was signed after Koivu met with Anaheim Ducks’ general manager, Bob Murray, while both of them exchanged hopes for the future and came to mutual terms on the agreement.
“If I didn't feel confident and strongly about their view and their willingness to make the push, then I would have looked for somewhere else, but it was very clear they want to get a team to make the playoffs and make a push at the springtime," Koivu added.
Koivu was drafted by the Montreal Canadiens as the 21st overall pick during the 1993 NHL Entry Draft and has played in a total of 1,012 games to date with a record of 776 points (236 goals, 540 assists).
Now that Anaheim has the 37-year-old secure for another year, they will be focusing on talking to the Finnish flash, Teemu Selanne, in the upcoming days on whether he is willing to stay in the league or opt for retirement.
Selanne has not confirmed whether he is staying or going and expressed the desire of doing so when the next season is ready to begin.
Updates on Teemu Selanne can be expected near the start of the preseason.
Tags: