Defenseman John Klingberg has signed a seven-year contract extension with the Dallas Stars, the NHL franchise announced on Friday.
Klingberg, who was due to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1, will remain in the heart of Texas until 2021-22 on a deal worth $4.25million per season.
The 22-year-old - a native of Sweden - established a new Stars records for most goals, assists and points in a single season by a rookie defenseman. H
e led all Stars defensemen in scoring and was third on the team in plus-minus at plus-5.
"He's someone we are building the backend of our defence on," said Stars general manager Jim Nill via the team's official website.
"We think he is going to be a major part of our foundation as we build this team moving forward."
Nill added: "They thought it was good to go long-term and so did we. We think it is great for the player and great for the team."
Klingberg - a fifth-round pick in the 2010 NHL draft - started the season in the AHL after undergoing double hip surgery.
He earned 12 points in 10 games before being called up to the Stars.
The Swede led all NHL rookie defensemen in assists (29) and points (40), and was second in goals (11).
He finished fourth in assists, seventh in points and seventh in even-strength points (28) among all rookies, additionally ranking third with an average 21:50 of ice time per game in 65 appearances.
"I had a good start when I got the call up here, and I got a lot of good help from my team-mates," Klingberg said.
"I didn't expect myself to score that many points, but that's just a bonus. I just wanted to get going here with the team, so [exceeded my expectations] a little bit maybe."