MONTREAL - The Montreal Canadiens are confident Max Pacioretty is on the mend.
The club re-signed the left-winger to a two-year contract extension Monday, just over three months after he suffered a serious concussion and a fractured vertebra on a hit from Boston's Zdeno Chara.
Pacioretty, 22, was taken from the ice on a stretcher March 8 after the Bruins defenceman hit him into a glass stanchion between the benches at the Bell Centre in Montreal.
He missed the rest of the regular season and the playoffs.
"A power forward with skills, Max showed that he can help our team and make a name for himself in the NHL," Canadiens general manager Pierre Gauthier said in a release. "We are confident that he will have recovered fully from the injury."
Pacioretty had 14 goals and 10 assists in 37 games with Montreal last season before the injury. He also recorded 32 points (17-15) in 27 games with Hamilton of the American Hockey League.
Pacioretty was the 22nd overall pick in the 2007 entry draft.
