NASHVILLE, Tenn. _ The Chicago Blackhawks believed in Artemi Panarin's abilities to play in the NHL when they signed the winger as a free agent out of Russia in the spring of 2015.
A season-and-a-half later, Panarin rewarded the organization's faith in him by agreeing to a bridge contract for far less money and terms than the winger could have demanded.
"Chicago gave me a chance to play at the very high level," Panarin said via an interpreter Thursday, a few hours after the Hawks made the deal official. "I like everything about the team and the environment here. You can't earn all the money in the world."
After capturing the Calder Trophy as the league's rookie of the year in '15-16, Panarin is fifth in the NHL scoring this season with 15 goals and 22 assists in the Hawks' first 37 games of the season. Due to be a restricted free agent following the season, Hawks general manager Stan Bowman didn't waste much time in working out a deal with Panarin to stay.
"I'm happy with the timing," Panarin said. "It's nice to get it out of the way. Some of the pressure is relieved. But some additional pressure is now here, because I need to justify the trust that has been given to me and perform as expected or better.
"I'm very happy that I'm in Chicago and that I'm able to perform to the best of my ability," Panarin added. "I very much like the city, I very much like the team. I want to say a special thank-you to Rocky Wirtz, John McDonough and Stan Bowman. I'm just very happy that things worked out the way they did."
Panarin has developed a strong chemistry with fellow winger Patrick Kane and center Artem Anisimov to become one of the NHL's most productive and dangerous lines.
"I'm happy for (Panarin) _ it's well-deserved," Kane said. "He's had a great season-and-a-half that he's been here and he's proven himself as one of the most dynamic players in the league. It's a great day to be a Blackhawk and a Hawks fan.
"Anisimov has four years after this year and 'Bread Man' for a couple of more years," Kane added. "Hopefully, we just keep building that chemistry. When you know we're all going to be here for a little while it's nice to have that comfort with each other. We'll keep trying to build off what we've kind of created here the past year and a half and try to get even better."
Said Panarin of playing with Kane, the NHL's reigning Hart Trophy winner: "I'm very happy to play along with Patrick. Any hockey player would cherish the opportunity to play along with a player like that. It gives me an opportunity to play my best hockey."
