Oilers sign Jason Dickinson to five-year contract extension
The Edmonton Oilers got a big piece of their offseason checklist crossed off on Sunday, as the team announced that it has signed center Jason Dickinson to a four-year contract extension.
Dickinson, who came over in a pre-deadline trade with the Chicago Blackhawks and provided strong center depth and defensive acumen to the Oilers’ forward unit, will make an average of $4 million per year over the life of the contract.
BIG JASON ENERGY 🔋 The #Oilers have signed forward Jason Dickinson to a five-year contract with an AAV of $4.0 million.
By signing the deal, Dickinson passes up on the opportunity to be one of the top centers on the unrestricted free agency market on July 1.
The Ontario native had 13 points in 47 games in Chicago before the trade, in which the Oilers also acquired forward Colton Dach while sending forward Andrew Mangiapane and a conditional first-round pick in the 2027 NHL Draft to the Blackhawks.
After swapping teams, Dickinson appeared in 17 games with the Oilers, posting a goal and three assists for four points before adding three points in four games in the Stanley Cup Playoffs as Edmonton bowed out in the first round with a six-game series loss to the Anaheim Ducks.
The No. 29 overall pick in the first round of the 2013 NHL Draft by the Dallas Stars, Dickinson has racked up 172 points on 75 goals and 97 assists in 566 career regular season appearances.
The Oilers are entering a two-year window in which they have superstar center Connor McDavid under contract, and general manager Stan Bowman’s ability to retain Dickinson is a step in the right direction toward ensuring that the team’s depth players do not bleed high-danger scoring opportunities against.
Barring more extensions ahead of July 1, Edmonton is currently slated to lose other depth forwards in free agency, as Jack Roslovic, Adam Henrique, Kasperi Kapanen and Curtis Lazar are set to be free agents.
After the Dickinson extension, Bowman currently has about $10.5 million in salary cap space with which to make additions to the roster, according to PuckPedia.