SPORTS

St. Louis Blues sign rising star Vladimir Tarasenko to 8-year, $60M deal

The Associated Press Published Tuesday, July 7, 2015 3:34PM EDT

In this Nov. 13, 2014 file photo, St. Louis Blues' Vladimir Tarasenko, of Russia, celebrates after scoring during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Nashville Predators in St. Louis. (Jeff Roberson / AP Photo)

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ST. LOUIS -- The St. Louis Blues say they have signed star forward Vladimir Tarasenko to an eight-year, $60 million contract.

General manager Doug Armstrong announced the move Tuesday, locking up the 23-year-old Tarasenko after a season in which he made his first career All-Star game and was 10th in the NHL with 73 points, including 37 goals, to go along with a plus-27 rating. He was the youngest Blues player with a 30-goal season since Brendan Shanahan in 1991-92.

Drafted 16th overall by the Blues in 2010, Tarasenko has 135 points (66 goals, 69 assists) in 179 career regular-season games over parts of three seasons. He also has 10 goals and an assist in 13 playoff games.

"Happy to be with you and carry a note on my chest," Tarasenko tweeted Tuesday. "Let's bring the cup to St. Louis!"

The Blues recently traded forward T.J. Oshie to Washington for Troy Brouwer, goalie Pheonix Copley and a third-round pick in next year's draft. St. Louis will have coach Ken Hitchcock back next season, when they hope to advance farther in the post-season. The Blues were ousted in the first round by Minnesota after posting the third-best record in team history.