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Mathew Barzal signed an eight-year contract with the New York Islanders. Barzal is happy about the contract and knows how much this opportunity will mean to him. "I love it here. I genuinely do," Barzal said, as quoted by nhl.com.
"I think that anyone who plays here knows that it's one of the top places to play in the League. From the practice rink, UBS [Arena], the boys in the room, (general manager) Lou [Lamoriello] being here, a fresh coaching staff, the city itself, 30 minutes from New York City.
The lifestyle is elite. I've loved it here literally every minute. There's no other place I'd rather be." He had only one goal, and that was the New York Islanders. "I just love it here and never had any talks with anyone about going anywhere else, doing anything else, playing this year out," he said.
"It was about wanting to get signed, wanting to commit to the boys and this organization. Just the commitment to this organization and the guys in this room. I'm so happy I get to spend eight years with a lot of these guys."
Louis P.
Lamoriello on Mathew Barzal
Louis P. Lamoriello wanted things resolved as soon as possible. "I think if we didn't get it done before the season, it would have lingered," Lamoriello said. "It becomes a distraction. I don't like distractions.
"I've seen him develop his game each and every year," Lamoriello said. "There's no question that he's improved his game without the puck. He knows he has a way to go in that area and he's committed to that and our coaching staff continues to work with him with that." They know what qualities this player has and how much he will mean to them.
"He has the ability to raise his game and I think … it's unlimited what his skills are."