The Boston Bruins announced Sunday morning that they have signed defenseman Jonathan Aspirot to a two-year extension with an average annual value of $887,500.
Aspirot's breakthrough has been a great story this year. The 26-year-old had spent six full seasons in the AHL prior to this year, split between the Senators and Flames organizations, without ever getting an NHL call-up.
Aspirot had a strong training camp and preseason for the Bruins, though, and wound up being one of their final cuts before opening night. He wouldn't be in Providence long. The Bruins called him up as an injury replacement and he made his NHL debut on Oct. 28, and Aspirot has been with Boston ever since.
He has earned his keep with steady defensive play, with coach Marco Sturm highlighting Aspirot's skating and ability to close quickly and decisively on plays. He's not the biggest defender at 6-feet even, but he has a sturdy 212-pound frame and has shown an ability to play physical and win battles.
Aspirot has averaged 16:24 time on ice across 25 games, with two goals and one assist. He is a plus-14 at 5-on-5 play, the best mark on the team, while starting a lot more shifts in the defensive zone than the offensive zone (39.3% offensive-zone start percentage).
Aspirot has also proven to be a bit of a Swiss Army knife on the back end, with Sturm using the left-shot defender on both the left and right side, and on all three pairings.
He has played well with all of the Bruins' top defensemen, including Charlie McAvoy most recently, with Boston outscoring opponents 5-2 in their 45 minutes together 5-on-5. The Bruins have a 9-3 advantage in Aspirot's 135 minutes with Nikita Zadorov, and a 2-0 edge in his 50 minutes with Hampus Lindholm.
Aspirot was playing on a one-year deal and would have become an unrestricted free agent after the season. But now his play this season has earned him a longer stay in Boston.