– Jim Rutherford, President and General Manager of the National Hockey League’s Carolina Hurricanes, today announced that the team has agreed to terms with left wing Alexander Semin (SEH-min) on a five-year contract extension. The deal will pay Semin $7 million per season through 2017-18.

“We’re very happy to retain Alex,” said Rutherford. “Alex is an elite player and has been a major contributor to the Hurricanes having a very strong top line.”

Semin, 29, is in his eighth NHL season and his first with Carolina, after signing as a free agent on July 26, 2012. The Krasnoyarsk, Russia, native leads the Hurricanes in assists (22), and ranks second in points (30) and plus/minus rating (+18) in 30 games this season. Semin (6’2”, 209 lbs.) is tied for 11th among all NHL skaters in assists this season, and tied for 10th in plus/minus rating. He ranks first among Hurricanes forwards in time on ice per game (20:39) and has spent the majority of the season skating alongside Hurricanes captain Eric Staal.

Semin has totaled 205 goals and 233 assists (438 points) in 499 career NHL games with the Washington Capitals and the Hurricanes. He netted his 200th career NHL goal on Feb. 11 against the New York Islanders. Washington’s first-round selection, 13th overall, in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft, Semin is fifth in the NHL in plus/minus over the last five seasons (+110), behind only Henrik Sedin, Zdeno Chara, Alexandre Burrows and Daniel Sedin.