The Columbus Blue Jackets signed forward Cam Atkinson to a three-year contract Monday.
Financial terms were not disclosed, but the Columbus Dispatch reported it's worth $10.5 million.
Atkinson, 25, has 13 goals and 25 points in 58 games this season. He would have become an unrestricted free agent on July 1.
"It’s the same process with everybody who is coming close to unrestricted free agency," Blue Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekalainen said. "It’s about protecting the franchise and its future and we can’t just let players walk into the unrestricted free agency without getting anything for them at the stage were in with our club."
A sixth-round pick (No. 157) in the 2008 NHL Draft by Columbus, he set career highs last season with 21 goals and 40 points. In parts of four NHL seasons, all with Columbus, he has 50 goals and 97 points in 199 games.
"We're very pleased to have him at the extended three years now," Blue Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekalainen said. "Cam’s been a big part of our team. He’s a good player for us and he remains so."