The New Jersey Devils have re-signed Erik Haula to a three-year, $9.45 million contract, the team announced Friday.
A veteran left winger who can also double as a center, Haula found an instant fit with the Devils. Though he was on an expiring contract when they acquired him in the 2022 offseason, Haula reiterated several times during the season how much he wanted to stay with the club.
Acquired from the Boston Bruins, Haula, 32, brought value — and a team-friendly one-year, $2.4 million deal — to the Devils’ offense. It took him a while to get going on the score sheet, but he finished with 14 goals and 41 points in the regular season and added four goals and six points in the postseason.
Under the new deal, Haula will make $3.9 million in 2023-24, $3.15 million in 2024-25 and $2.4 million in 2025-26.
“When I traded for Erik, we talked about how he was the type of player that we needed to help us continue to move the group forward,” Devils general manager Tom Fitzgerald said in a statement. “He played key minutes in all situations throughout the season — power play, penalty kill, taking faceoffs — and provided leadership for our team. At the end of the season, he told me how much he wanted to be a part of what we are building here in New Jersey, and I’m glad we could quickly get a deal done that gives him a place to lay down roots with his family.”
Likely more suited for a third-line role, Haula bounced around the top three lines with the Devils. He may be far removed from his career-high 29-goal season with the Vegas Golden Knights in 2017-18, but Haula can still win faceoffs, get to the net in the middle of traffic and finish when given the opportunity.
Haula’s 16 minutes, 37 seconds average ice time last season in New Jersey was the second highest of his 11-year career.
Haula has totaled 281 points (126 goals, 155 assists) in 614 career games with the Minnesota Wild, Vegas Golden Knights, Carolina Hurricanes, Florida Panthers, Nashville Predators, Bruins and Devils. He was selected by the Wild in the seventh round of the 2009 NHL draft.
Reuters contributed to this report.