Artemi Panarin, Blackhawks Agree to New Contract: Details, Comments, Reaction

The Chicago Blackhawks seem to have ensured one of their most productive pieces will remain in place for the foreseeable future.

According to Scott Powers of The Athletic, the Blackhawks reportedly inked winger Artemi Panarin to a contract extension Wednesday. The team is expected to announce the deal Thursday, per CSN Chicago's Charlie Roumeliotis.

Bob McKenzie of TSN provided some details on the contract, "it's believed to be a two-year bridge deal in the $6M AAV neighborhood."

Mark Lazerus of the Chicago Sun-Times wrote Panarin was looking to sign a six- or seven-year deal during the upcoming offseason for more than $6 million or $7 million a year.

Panarin leads the team with 37 points this season in just his second year in the NHL. He won the Calder Trophy as the league's Rookie of the Year in 2015-16 behind 77 points (30 goals and 47 assists) and frequently skated alongside Patrick Kane, who won the Hart Trophy as the NHL MVP.

Powers said general manager Stan Bowman made it a priority to re-sign the 25-year-old Panarin, especially since Chicago has recently been forced to trade away young pieces such as Brandon Saad, Teuvo Teravainen and Andrew Shaw because of salary-cap issues.

Bowman commented on his desire to keep Panarin in the Windy City in July, per Powers: "We've done it where we've signed guys in advance, during a season or the end of a season. We want to bring him back and keep him in Chicago. He had a great season [in 2015-16]. Love what he brings to the table. That'll play itself out as we go along here."

Kane, Panarin and Artem Anisimov often work well together when paired on Chicago's second line when the team is fully healthy, which is one reason the Blackhawks sit atop the Central Division standings with 49 points.

Considering Panarin is just 25 and Kane is 28, Chicago will ideally reap the benefits of the pair's offensive prowess for years to come following Wednesday's news.