NEW YORK — The sleek-skating playmaker often has repeated how much he enjoys playing for the Islanders and how he hoped to remain on Long Island for the long term. On Tuesday, the team announced Barzal, 25, had agreed to an eight-year extension, and an NHL source confirmed the average annual value is $9.15 million.
The $73.2 million package becomes the richest contract in Islanders’ history.
“There’s just so much excitement,” Barzal said at Northwell Health Ice Center in East Meadow before the Islanders faced the Flyers in a preseason game in Philadelphia. “It’s one of those days you’re never going to forget. I called my parents last night when it got done. Any time your mom has a tear in her eye, you either did something really good or something really bad. It’s a special day for me and my family.
