Selanne agrees to terms on one-year, $4M deal with Ducks

The Finnish Flash is rolling into his 40s with the Anaheim Ducks.

Teemu Selanne agreed to a one-year deal worth US$4 million to return to the Ducks on Thursday after the 41-year-old right-winger decided his surgically repaired knee will hold up for a 19th NHL season.

Selanne shows few signs of slowing down after nearly two decades as an elite NHL scorer. He finished eighth in the league last season with 80 points, the third-best season in league history for a player past his 40th birthday.

"I really feel like I can still play at the same level I played at in the past," Selanne said. "If you can't do that, you can't enjoy the game as much, and there would be no way I'd come back. The main factor for me is that I can be healthy, my knee is OK to play at this level, and I can use my speed and play at my level."

Few players have ever been faster than Selanne, the 27th-leading scorer in NHL history with 1,340 points. He ranks 14th in goals with 637, and he's also the Ducks' career scoring leader after spending parts of 12 seasons with Anaheim.

The Ducks were cautiously confident Selanne would return after his outstanding season, but spent the summer debating his future after knee surgery in early July. A slow recovery worried him, but Selanne has been skating daily in Anaheim in recent weeks, building strength and endurance.

He has debated retirement each summer for the past four years since the Ducks won the Stanley Cup, but the debate changed this summer after his dynamic season and the Ducks' impressive rally from a slow start to the fourth seed in the Western Conference playoffs.

"Last year was so much fun," Selanne said. "In the past summers, I've been thinking about whether I still wanted to play hockey. This summer it was clear that I wanted to play hockey, but the question was whether I could. We have a good team, and I've been so lucky to play with great players. I've enjoyed hockey so much, especially since the lockout. The passion for the game is still here, and I'm still excited."

Selanne's decision to return is a huge boost to the Ducks, who open training camp on Saturday. Anaheim opens the season with a European tour that includes a game in the Helsinki area against Jokerit, Selanne's former club -- a scheduling twist that many Ducks suggested was a sneaky way to force Selanne to come back.

League MVP Corey Perry and captain Ryan Getzlaf also are back with the Ducks along with goalie Jonas Hiller, who believes he has beaten an apparent case of vertigo that sidelined him for much of last season.

The Ducks know they'll be much better with Selanne as the scoring engine on the Ducks' second line alongside Saku Koivu, his centre and fellow Finn.

"As he showed again last season, Teemu still has the drive, determination, and skill to play at an elite level," Ducks general manager Bob Murray said. "Most importantly for us, his passion comes from not just playing, but playing for the Ducks."

Selanne was among 15 players to average better than a point per game last season, and he finished third in the NHL with 16 power-play goals. He was clutch, too: Selanne became the first player in NHL history to score four game-tying goals in the final three minutes of a third period in the same season.

Selanne is the Ducks' career leader in goals, assists, power-play points, game-winning goals and games played.

Before leaving for his summer break in Finland, Selanne said he wouldn't consider moving his family to another city for another season -- not even Winnipeg, where he broke into the NHL by scoring 76 goals as a 22-year-old rookie in his jaw-dropping 1992-93 campaign.

Selanne said his agent still got a call from the Jets, however.

"When you have four kids and a couple of dogs and a couple of horses and stuff, so many things to move, there is no way I can move anymore," said Selanne, who lives in an exclusive coastal community in Orange County. "But like I said, Winnipeg has been a special place for me, and I'm very excited to go back and play there again."

The Ducks visit Winnipeg on Dec. 17.

Selanne realizes Anaheim fans will immediately wonder if their beloved Finn is finally finished after this one-year deal. After all, the Honda Center crowd started chanting "One more year!" at him just a few games into last season.

"I think so, (but) I know I've said that the last five years," Selanne said. "But you've got to stop somewhere, and I've always approached this whole thing by saying it's my last year. I think that's really worked well for me."

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Isles, Tavares agree to terms on six-year, $33M extension

UNIONDALE, N.Y. -- Forget all that talk and speculation that John Tavares would flee Long Island as soon as he got a chance at free agency.

Not only is he staying put, but the soon-to-be 21-year-old centre won't even test the market.

Tavares and the New York Islanders agreed to terms on a six-year, US$33 million contract that will keep the 2009 No. 1 overall pick under contract through the 2017-18 season. The new deal won't kick in until Tavares' three-year, entry-level contract expires after the upcoming season.

Sorry Maple Leafs fans. Tavares isn't coming home to Ontario any time soon. Talks began this summer and the deal was hammered out on Wednesday, two days before the start of training camp.

"This was more about me being happy about being an Islander and wanting to be here for a long time," Tavares said Thursday, while decked out in a blue and orange Islanders shirt that matched one worn by general manager Garth Snow. "We started talking, and once we were that close we felt like there was no reason to let it hang over our heads.

"We wanted to get it done before training camp."

The Islanders operate on a low budget, and have to concern themselves more with reaching the floor of the salary cap rather than the upper levels. New York has done a good job in signing young core players the club hopes will get them back to the playoffs and beyond.

Tavares and fellow forwards Matt Moulson, Michael Grabner and Kyle Okposo are all signed for at least three more seasons.

The Islanders have finished last in the Atlantic Division four straight years, have missed the playoffs in five of six seasons, and haven't won a post-season series since 1993. Their last-place overall finish in the 2008-09 season enabled them to pick Tavares No. 1 overall in the draft.

"The Stanley Cup is what we want," Tavares said. "That's what pushes us. That's what we're driven for. Obviously, sooner rather than later would be great. For us, this season it's one day at a time. Being a young team, we have a little bit more experience now. I think it's time for us to take that next step."

Tavares said he wasn't concerned about the uncertainty of an organization that is desperate for a new arena to replace the outdated Nassau Coliseum. The Islanders hoped a summertime vote for public funding to build a replacement arena would pass, but it fell short -- leaving the team's future on Long Island in serious doubt.

For now, he is enjoying his time. The team's lease at Nassau Coliseum still runs for a few more seasons.

"I know (owner Charles Wang) is committed to keeping the team here and doing everything possible," Tavares said. "That speaks volumes to me. They've made a big commitment to me since I was drafted and now with this new contract. That's not really in my control, but I never really had a thought about whether we'd be leaving here. I believe we're going to be here and that's how I approach it."

Tavares' new contract will carry an annual salary cap charge of US$5.5 million.

He has led New York in points in each of his two seasons. He topped his rookie numbers last season, recording 29 goals and 67 points in 79 games. Overall, Tavares has 53 goals and 121 points in 161 NHL games.

"It has been our goal to make sure we put the best team on the ice every night, and today we take another important step in ensuring this will continue," Snow said. "We are building a young core of players and are excited to see them commit to not only this organization, but to the Long Island community, as well.

"John is a big part of our young core. He's a player who strives to be the best he can. From my perspective, I have no reservations in making a commitment like this with John and to any player that brings to the table what John brings both on and off the ice."

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