Thomas Chabot quickly became the Senators' top defenseman, and now he'll be staying in Ottawa for a long time. The Sens inked Chabot to an eight-year, $64 million deal, the team announced Juan Yepez Jersey on Thursday. The deal buys out four years of unrestricted free agencyand carries an AAV of $8 million. There are no bonuses on the deal and a modified NTC (10 team no-trade clause) in the final four years of his deal. "Thomas is an exceptional talent and an outstanding teammate, who is impactful both on and off the ice. He is the type of player that can develop into a core member of a championship-level team in the National Hockey League," general manager Pierre Dorion said in a pre s release. "He is an NHL All-Star,an elite skater and puck-mover who plays with pace and determination. "We are convinced Thomas will have a significant impact on the Ottawa Senators as we develop and grow into a highly competitive team in the coming seasons and we are extremely proud that Thomas will continue to be a key part of our team's future succe s moving forward. Today is a great day of the OttawaSenators franchise." w8 for it... Ottawa Senators (@Senators) The 22-year-old blueliner made major strides last season; after putting up nine goals and 25 points in his rookie campaign with the Senators back in 2017-18, he avoided the dreaded"sophomore slump" and thrived in his second year, posting 14 goals and 55 points in 2018-19. He was the highest-scoring defenseman on the team andthird in scoring among all Ottawa skaters. His play earned him a trip to the 2019 NHL All-Star Game, and hefinished 18th in Norris Trophy voting. SENATORS OFFSEASON GRADE: Ottawa ready to turn a new leaf after productive summer Chabot is a proven offensive defenseman who has a knack for the net and can start the breakout. Last year, hegrew more confident in his game and added more of an emphasis on scoring and getting pucks on net, putting up 185 shots. He's also a great pa serand can log a lot of minuteswhileplaying versatile roles at even strength and on special teams. The 6-2, 196-pounderisstrong at both ends of the ice, able to block a lot of shots, hustle on the backcheck and force turnovers. Thomas Chabot pick pockets Ryan Johansen, snipes it and celly with thr crowd Bar South N Celly (@BarSouthNCelly) Still, he has room for improvement.Chabot must use his size to his advantage and become more physical, and he needs to take better care of the puck. Considering the Senators are pushing toward redemption andin the hunt for a playoff spot while also changing the culture and rebuilding the roster completely keeping a player like Chabot gives them security on defense, as well as a rising star who has a lot of upsideand is just entering the prime of his career. Alex Call Jersey