The Winnipeg Jets have signed captain Blake Wheeler to a five-year contract extension worth $41.25 million, the team announced on Tuesday.
Wheeler, 32, has been in the NHL for 10 years, playing eight of those seasons with the Jets. He was named captain in August 2016 and is one of three players still with the organization after it relocated to Winnipeg in 2011.
Wheeler, coming off a 91-point season, tied for the NHL-lead in assists with 68. In January, he represented the Jets at the NHL All-Star Game and was named the NHL’s First Star of the Week in December after scoring two goals and eight assists within four games. After the season ended, he was also a finalist for the Mark Messier Leadership Award.
The Minnesota-native is the franchise leader in assists and is second on the all-time Jets franchise scoring list.
Throughout his entire career, Wheeler has 605 points in 778 career games with Boston, Atlanta and Winnipeg.
