Flames re-sign Mark Jankowski (two years, $1.675M AAV)

Ladies and gentleman, a Calgary Flames forward has turned one year of National Hockey League duty into a pretty hefty raise. The club announced this morning that they’ve re-signed centre Mark Jankowski to a two-year deal worth $1.675 million per season. The signing allows the club to avoid salary arbitration with Jankowski.

Jankowski, 23, was the Flames’ first round selection in the 2012 NHL Draft. Left a bit in the shadows due to the drafting and immediate NHL success of players like Sean Monahan, Sam Bennett and Matthew Tkachuk, Jankowski spent four years with Providence College. He won an NCAA Championship and a playoff All-Conference honour. He gradually improved and then he signed his entry-level deal.

His first year pro saw him establish himself as a very solid AHLer. His second year pro saw him establish himself as a pretty solid NHLer, with 17 goals and 25 points as a rookie. As a result, he’ll get a raise from his prior $925,000 salary. Matt Cane’s model predicted that a two-year contract would cost $1.31 million annually, so he gets a bit more than the model predicted.

Jankowski’s signing leaves just Noah Hanifin, Brett Kulak, Garnet Hathaway, Hunter Shinkaruk and David Rittich still unsigned as far as restricted free agents go. Kulak’s arbitration award will be announced later today. They have roughly $6.23 million in remaining cap space to cover two defensemen, one forward, and Tkachuk’s performance bonuses – and it’s likely roughly half of that will go to Hanifin. It’s going to be tight.