"Pretty stressful couple of hours in the morning [Monday] for me, just not knowing what was going to happen," Laughton said Tuesday. "Just very thankful that we got something done in the afternoon and I'm able to stay in Philly. I love it here. I've said it before, I believe in these guys, I believe in this group and I love the staff here. I love everyone around here. Obviously not the year that we wanted to have so far but we're still in the mix and we've got to keep fighting and that's what we'll do."
The 26-year-old forward was in the final season of a two-year contract and could have been an unrestricted free agent after the season. He said being able to sign a long-term contract with Philadelphia was key for him.
"It was pretty important for me to have that security," Laughton said. "And like I've said before, I really believe in this franchise and the people around it. So I want to be a part of something here where we can do something special and having that term is part of that and just being part of the group here and trying to win a [Stanley] Cup at the end of the day. So that's what I'm going to do and I'm going to continue to work hard and push for that goal and I know everyone around here is going try and do the same."
Laughton has scored 17 points (seven goals, 10 assists) in 38 games this season.
"Those types of players are hard to get," Flyers general manager Chuck Fletcher said Monday. "Scott was drafted by the Flyers, we developed him. He loves being a Flyer and at the end of the day, he made a commitment to us today to sign and stay with us."
Selected by the Flyers in the first round (No. 20) of the 2012 NHL Draft, Laughton has scored 123 points (51 goals, 72 assists) in 359 regular-season games, and 10 points (six goals, four assists) in 24 Stanley Cup Playoff games.
"It's hard to get those players. I think we have a couple other holes on our team and the thought of creating an additional hole to me wasn't very appealing," Fletcher said. "He's part of the solution for us going forward and we were able to lock him up to a contract that we feel works for us going forward and obviously works for Scott."
The Flyers (19-16-6), who play at the Washington Capitals on Tuesday (7 p.m. ET; NBCSN, TVAS, NBCSWA, NBCSP, NHL.TV), are tied with the New York Rangers for fifth place in the eight-team MassMutual East Division, four points behind the fourth-place Boston Bruins. The top four teams qualify for the playoffs.
NHL.com independent correspondent Harvey Valentine contributed to this report
