Oliver Ekman-Larsson is staying with his pack

Per recent reports, Arizona Coyotes defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson will no longer be a free agent following the 2018-19 season.

In the dying hours of Monday evening, a tweet from Arizona-based Twitter account Arizona Sports suggested that star defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson and his longtime team, the Arizona Coyotes, will maintain their relationship following the 2018-19 NHL season.

Following up on the reported news, TSN’s Darren Dreger also took to Twitter to indicate further details surrounding the contract.

Ekman-Larsson, who will be 27 next month, saw his current contract reward him with an average salary of 5.5 million per year. However, as Dreger indicated, the new deal would see his yearly cap-hit rise by well over $2 million.

Prior to the news, both parties seemed eager to get a deal done, with general manager John Chayka recently discussing the matter at the scouting combine in Buffalo earlier this month.

“[We] really believe in him and what he can bring to our team,” Chayka informed NHL.com. “[We’re] Trying to get something done to lock him up long, long term. Build around him and really put together a team he deserves,” he added.

Although no official contract can be signed until the free-agency period commences on July 1, the finalized deal could see Ekman-Larsson become one of the highest earning D-men across the league.

Value-wise, the agreement seems to benefit Arizona the most.

For the Coyotes, they were able to maintain one of the most consistent puck-moving defensemen in the league at a relatively good price.

Adding to this, locking-up OEL for the long-term was a wise move for the Coyotes considering the franchise hasn’t added a legitimate top two defenseman in free agency since Ed Jovanovski signed with them…12 years ago.

Currently, Ekman-Larsson has played in at least 90 percent of his team’s scheduled games over the past 7 seasons and is fourth in goals by blue-liners over that same time period. This past year, he once again cracked the 40-point plateau and is second amongst players at his positions in powerplay goals over the last 5 seasons with 44.

With that being said, letting number 23 walk clearly was not an option for Arizona.

Ekman-Larsson on the other hand, could have potentially signed a bigger contract or had a more realistic chance at winning a Stanley Cup in the near future if he waited and signed elsewhere.

For the time being, both parties ultimately seem content with their situation and should be able to set aside trade rumours for the next few seasons; giving the Coyotes a sense of stability they lacked this past season.

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Will the move bode well for Ekman Larsson and the Arizona Coyotes? Should he have waited for next offseason to make a deal? Does the move have any affect on fellow Swede, Erik Karlsson’s, decision to stay/leave Ottawa?

Discuss below.