Columbus Blue Jackets, David Savard Agree To 5-Year, $21.25M Deal

The Columbus Blue Jackets have signed David Savard to a five-year contract extension, the team’s general manager Jarmo Kekalainen announced Tuesday.

The 24-year-old Savard is coming off a career season when he had 36 points (11 goals and 25 assists) ranking second overall among all NHL defensemen.

"Getting David signed to a contract extension was a priority for us and we are very happy to have reached a long-term deal with him," Kekalainen said in the team’s press release. "He has taken tremendous steps the past two seasons and responded very well to the larger role he played on our blueline last season. We are excited about his future with the Blue Jackets."

The team did not disclose the amount of the deal but The Columbus Dispatch confirms the contract is worth $21.25 million.

Savard, who is from Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec in Canada, signed a two-year deal with the Blue Jackets a year ago and his stay in Columbus will be extended until the 2020-2021 NHL Season.

Savard was picked in the fourth round of the 2009 NHL Entry Draft or the 94th overall selection. He has been with the Blue Jackets the last four seasons playing a full 82-game season last year. For his entire four-year NHL career, he has accumulated 61 points (18 goals and 43 assists) in 187 games played in the regular season and 4 assists in 6 games played in the postseason.

Savard was also a key member of the Canadian ice hockey national team at the 2015 World Ice Hockey Championships in Czech Republic, where Canada bagged the gold medal. In 10 international games, Savard is credited four assists.