Pittsburgh re-signs Jamie Oleksiak to a three-year deal

Who needs arbitration?

Hours after Jamie Oleksiak’s arbitration hearing date was announced, the Penguins went and signed the rugged defenseman to a shiny new contact.

From the Penguins:

The Pittsburgh Penguins have re-signed defenseman Jamie Oleksiak to a three-year contract, it was announced today by executive vice president and general manager Jim Rutherford.

The deal runs through the 2020-21 campaign and it carries an average annual value of $2,137,500.

Oleksiak, 25, parlayed his acquisition from the Dallas Stars on December 19, 2017 into a career year. In his 47 regular-season games with the Penguins following the trade, Oleksiak scored four goals, 10 assists 14 points and was plus-13. Combined with his time in Dallas, Oleksiak set highs in all offensive categories across the board, finishing with 17 points (5G-12A) in 68 games.

The Penguins must feel quite confident in Oleksiak and his abilities by rewarding him with a nice raise. The new deal looks similar to the one Ian Cole signed in June of 2015, with both players making approximately $2.1 million.

With Oleksiak now locked up, the Penguins’ 2018-19 roster looks to be set and this deal leaves the Penguins with $745,000 left in cap space, according to CapFriendly.