Minnesota Wild captain Mikko Koivu has signed a seven year contract extension, avoiding an unrestricted free agency mess for the upcoming season. Koivu is, of course, the most popular player on the Wild roster, and has been the core for years. He has become the face of the franchise with the departure of Marian Gaborik.
From Wild.com:
"It's a milestone day in the history of the Minnesota Wild," said Fletcher minutes after seeing the signed deal on his desk. "When you have your franchise player commit to you, really for the next eight seasons. He's our best hockey player. He's our captain. And he's still just 27 with his best hockey years ahead of him."
Stay tuned to SBNation Minnesota and Hockey Wilderness for more on this as it happens.