Ryan Reaves signed a two-year, $3.5 million contract with the Vegas Golden Knights on Monday. It has an average annual value of $1.75 million.
The 33-year-old forward could have become an unrestricted free agent after the season.
"I don't think it's a secret that I love it here and I want to stay," Reaves said Tuesday. "For sure, I've heard people say you could've gotten me cheaper because I have the business [here] and everything. But at the end of the day, hockey comes first for me. The hockey business decision had to be before the beer business, whatever else I do. The hockey has to come first, and it has to make sense for me and my family.
"I'm getting older now. I'm not going to say this is my last contract, because I think I have a couple more years after that. But it definitely had to make sense, and when they approached me, for sure, this is the No. 1 place I want to be and I didn't want to leave."
Reaves scored 15 points (eight goals, seven assists) and led the NHL with 316 hits in 71 games this season before it was paused March 12 due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus.
"Real good signing for our organization," Vegas general manager Kelly McCrimmon said Monday. "He's become a real valuable player to our team. He's widely respected across the League by both teammates and opponents. I think with as hard a game as he plays, he does a really good job with his discipline, and I think in part that's because he's a respected player by the referees. He's not cheap. He's honest. He's tough. He's hard. He's a really intelligent player. The coaching staff really appreciate what he does for our team."
The Golden Knights (39-24-8, .606 points percentage) finished third in the Western Conference and will participate in the Stanley Cup Qualifiers under the 24-team NHL Return to Play Plan. They will play a round-robin at a date and site to be decided with the St. Louis Blues, Colorado Avalanche and Dallas Stars to determine seeding for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Reaves, who was selected by the Blues in the fifth round (No. 156) of the 2005 NHL Draft, has 96 points (48 goals, 48 assists) in 649 NHL games for the Blues, Pittsburgh Penguins and Golden Knights. He helped Vegas reach the Stanley Cup Final in its inaugural season of 2017-18.
NHL.com columnist Nicholas J. Cotsonika contributed to this report
