The Vancouver Canucks and Kevin Bieksa have agreed to a new contract, according to a TSN report. The terms have yet to be learned.
The 30-year-old defenseman could have become an unrestricted free agent Friday, but instead chose to re-sign with the team that selected him in the fifth round of the 2001 Entry Draft.
Bieksa had 6 goals and 16 assists last season as the Canucks came within one victory of winning their first Stanley Cup. During the playoffs, Bieksa had 5 goals and 5 assists in 25 games and had the series-clinching goal in double overtime against the San Jose Sharks in the Western Conference Final.
At the start of last season, there was talk that Bieksa could be traded. The Canucks had a glut of defensemen, but Bieksa emerged as one of their most reliable blueliners in a season when virtually every Canucks defenseman suffered an injury.
The Canucks are left with two unrestricted free-agent defensemen they've yet to sign -- Christian Ehrhoff and Sami Salo.
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