Jesper Bratt signed a two-year, $5.5 million contract with the New Jersey Devils on Sunday. It has an average annual value of $2.75 million.
The 22-year-old forward, who was a restricted free agent, scored 32 points, including an NHL career-high 16 goals, in 60 games with the Devils last season.
"[We're] relieved, but extremely excited," general manager Tom Fitzgerald said. "Jesper Bratt's a big part of our team, he's a big part of our future. Things like this, sometimes the business side can take a little bit longer than you expect or want, but at the end of the day we're ecstatic that Jesper is back in the mix here."
Fitzgerald said Bratt is still in Sweden and his time of arrival in New Jersey is uncertain. Bratt will not be available for the Devils' season opener against the Boston Bruins at Prudential Center on Thursday.
"That's the unknown right now where the world is and how immigration works across the world," Fitzgerald said. "I'm not sure what the timing is. We're basically at the mercy of the immigration ... when he gets his visa, when he can travel over. The only thing I can guarantee is he's got to quarantine for seven days."
Selected by New Jersey in sixth round (No. 162) of the 2016 NHL Draft, Bratt has scored 100 points (37 goals, 63 assists) in 185 regular-season games with the Devils and no points in one Stanley Cup Playoff game.
