The Chicago Blackhawks signed defenceman Connor Murphy to a four-year, $17.6 million contract extension on Tuesday.

The deal will carry an average annual value of $4.4 million for Murphy, who was scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent next summer.

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"When we acquired Connor in the summer of 2017, we had visions of him growing as both a player and leader in our organization for many years," Blackhawks general manager Stan Bowman said.