Rangers extend Lafrenière after breakout season

Alexis Lafreniere and the New York Rangers have agreed on a seven-year contract extension for the first overall pick in the 2020 NHL draft, a source confirmed to ESPN.

The new contract for Lafrenière, 23, will carry a $7.45 million average annual value (AAV) and runs through the 2031-32 season. After three NHL seasons that didn’t live up to Lafrenière’s lofty draft position, last season was a breakout for the Quebec-born left wing.

Lafrenière had 28 goals and 29 assists (57 points) in 82 games. He was outstanding in the Rangers’ run to the Eastern Conference finals, with 14 points in 16 games, tying Vincent Trocheck for the team lead in goals (8).

In his fifth NHL season, Lafrenière has 155 points (79 goals, 76 assists) in 305 games. Through seven games this season, Lafrenière has 4 goals and 3 assists, averaging a career best 17:51 per game in ice time.

“It’s a confidence that built last year to him being one of our best players in the playoffs,” Rangers coach Peter Laviolette said earlier this month. “You have to be carrying some confidence to try and pull off some of the stuff that he did successfully [in the playoffs]. It seems like he has picked up right where he left off last year, when he made some plays that were pretty special.”

Details on Lafrenière’s contract were first reported by PuckPedia.