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Markov, pending UFA, wants to stay in Montreal ‘for the rest of my career’

Vancouver Canucks v Montreal Canadiens

MONTREAL- NOVEMBER 9: Andrei Markov #79 of the Montreal Canadiens waits for a faceoff during the NHL game Vancouver Canucks at the Bell Centre on November 9, 2010 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The Canadiens defeated the Canucks 2-0. (Photo by Richard Wolowicz/Getty Images)

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Andrei Markov wants to be a Canadien for the remainder of his playing days, and he’s not afraid to said it.

“Maybe I’m going to sign another contract tomorrow. Maybe in another month. We’ll see,” Markov said, per the Montreal Gazette. “I’d like to stay here for the rest of my career.”

Markov, 35, has spent his entire 13-year career in Montreal, appearing in over 700 regular season and 50 playoff games. He’s played in a pair of All-Star Games and emerged as one of the league’s better offensive defensemen, posting a career-high 64 points during the 2008-09 campaign.

The last few seasons, though, have been a struggle.

A slew of knee injuries saw him miss over 180 games in a three-year span. There were major concerns that the injuries might be of the career-ending variety, given Markov was well on the wrong side of 30.

But to his credit, he has returned and played well for the Habs, scoring 30 points during the lockout-shortened ’13 campaign and 24 points through 46 games this year. Along with P.K. Subban, Markov is one of the anchors of Montreal’s 10th-ranked power play (Subban leads the Habs with 12 power play assists, Markov is second with 11.)

He was also named to Russia’s Olympic squad last week, the third time he’s been selected to represent his country at the Winter Games.

Financially speaking, Markov will be an interesting case study. He’s in the final of a three-year, $17.25 million deal -- carrying an average annual cap hit of $5.75 million -- and could net a fairly large sum on the open market, given 1) the cap’s going up, and 2) veteran offensive defensemen really cashed in last summer (Mark Streit signed for $21 million in Philly, Sergei Gonchar got $10 million from Dallas).

Markov is hoping he’ll get his money in Montreal, but acknowledged nothing’s in the works just yet.

“Marc [Bergevin, Montreal’s GM] is interested to talk to me but there’s nothing specific now,” he said. “There is nothing I can say right now.”