Hurricanes sign center Sebastian Aho to $78 million extension

The Carolina Hurricanes have locked up star center Sebastian Aho with an eight-year, $78 million contract extension that will keep him with the club through the 2031-32 season.

Aho will get a bump from the $8.5 million salary he'll make this season and will remain – at least for now – the highest-paid player on the Hurricanes roster.

“Sebastian has developed into one of the best two-way centers in hockey,” general manager Don Waddell said Tuesday. “He’s a tremendous leader on and off the ice who sets a great example for our younger players. We’re grateful that he’s decided to stay in Carolina for the foreseeable future.”

Aho has 468 points in 520 career regular-season games, all of them with Carolina.

The native of Finland scored 36 goals last season, continuing a streak of scoring at least 24 in each of his seven NHL seasons. He also added five goals and seven assists in the playoffs as the Hurricanes reached the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2019.

Fittingly, the new deal was announced on Aho's 26th birthday.