The Boston Bruins and defenseman Torey Krug have agreed to terms on a four-year contract carrying an AAV of $5.25 million, the team announced Thursday.
This comes after a morning of rumors that the decision to buyout Dennis Seidenberg has opened the door to the team locking in one of its top young defenseman. The deal buys into the 25-year-old defenseman’s UFA years and will keep him in black and gold until he’s 29.
#NHLBruins sign Torey Krug to 4-year contract worth an AAV of $5.25 million: https://t.co/S6o4uYOt22 pic.twitter.com/TJtNiSp4eT
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) June 30, 2016
It’s an important deal for the Bs, who need to address some holes on the blue line during the summer. Getting Krug at $5.25 million should help them to navigate tricky salary cap waters, as it comes in at a pretty team-friendly price.
Krug’s goal-scoring fell off last year, posting just four after having put up 14 and 12 in the previous two seasons. He nonetheless posted a career-high 44 points while averaging a career-high of 21:37 of all-situation ice time. That average ice time ranked second only to Zdeno Chara on the team, showing that Krug has become a vital part of the team’s defense, particularly after they traded away Dougie Hamilton last summer.
The deal is team-friendly, but isn’t without precedent. Krug’s deal falls into a similar category to the deals that other young defenseman like Morgan Rielly, John Klingberg and Sami Vatanen have recently signed.