The New Jersey Devils have signed forward Pavel Zacha to a three-year entry-level contract with an average annual value $925,000, the club announced today.
Zacha was the sixth overall pick in the 2015 draft. The 18-year-old from the Czech Republic had 34 points in 37 games last season with OHL Sarnia.
“I think I am physical and I intend to work hard this summer and in training camp and we’ll see if I can play in the NHL next year,” Zacha said after he was drafted, per Sportsnet.
Devils GM Ray Shero said of Zacha that he was “thrilled to have a guy with the size that he has who has the skating ability and a real upside to his game.”
However, Shero did not commit to having the 6-3, 210-pound teenager on the roster next season: “Hopefully, the decision will be apparent to us, but we’ll do what’s best for him in the short and long run and certainly what’s best for the organization.”
That number does not include performance bonuses. It does include whatever signing bonus there is. https://t.co/yfRA5gbt8B
— Tom Gulitti (@TomGulittiNHL) August 11, 2015
Related: Devils’ Zacha to skip Czech’s world junior evaluation camp