Canes, Fast agree to two-year contract extension

The Carolina Hurricanes have re-signed forward Jesper Fast to a two-year, $2.4 million AAV contract extension.

The Swedish winger is coming off of the final year of a three-year, $6 million deal and finished off last season with 10 goals and 29 points in the regular season and had six goals - tied for the team lead - and nine points in 15 playoff games.

Fast is a player that does all the little things right. He plays a 200-foot game and has been one of the Hurricanes' best forecheckers.

But it's his play away from the puck that makes his coaches rave. A defensive specialist before all else, Fast alongside Jordan Staal has been the staple shutdown line for Carolina for three years running now.

Fast is exactly what teams looks for in a depth forward and should bring plenty of value in the bottom-six.

The extension gives Fast a slight pay raise and allows Brind'Amour to keep his matchup line together for at least another season.

Here's the team's official press release:

‘CANES RE-SIGN FAST TO TWO-YEAR CONTRACT
Forward scored a team-high six goals during the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs

RALEIGH, N.C. – Don Waddell, President and General Manager of the National Hockey League’s Carolina Hurricanes, today announced that the team has signed forward Jesper Fast to a two-year, $4.8 million contract extension. The deal will pay Fast an average-annual value (AAV) of $2.4 million per season through

“Jesper is an extremely hard worker on both ends of the ice, and his consistency has played a key role in our success over the past three seasons,” said Waddell. “He is the kind of person and player that every team is looking for, and we are thrilled to have him back in our locker room.”

Fast, 31, tallied 29 points (10g, 19a) in 80 regular-season games with Carolina in 2022-23, and added nine points (6g, 3a) in 15 games during the Stanley Cup Playoffs. He led the team in goals and game-winning goals (2) during the postseason, becoming just the fourth player in franchise history to score two overtime winners in a single playoff year. The 6’1”, 188-pound winger has recorded 82 points (30g, 52a) in 208 games with Carolina since signing with the team as a free agent on Oct. 10, 2020, leading all Hurricanes forwards in blocked shots (99) and ranking fourth on the team in hits (291) over that span. Fast was also selected by his Hurricanes teammates as the winner of the 2021-22 Steve Chiasson Award, given annually to the player who best exemplifies determination and dedication while proving to be an inspiration through his performance and approach to the game, and he previously won the Rangers’ Players’ Player Award in a team-record five consecutive seasons (2015-20). Fast has skated in 630 career NHL games with Carolina and New York, earning 229 points (85g, 144a). The Nassjo, Sweden, native was selected by the Rangers in the sixth round, 157th overall, of the 2010 NHL Draft.