Tampa Bay Lightning star defenseman Victor Hedman has spent the entirety of his 15-year career with the club. He has been their top defenseman for many years, and that continued this season. In 78 games, the 33-year-old had 13 goals, 76 points, and a plus-18 rating.

Given Hedman’s importance to the team, keeping him around naturally should be a priority for the Lightning. He is entering the final season of his contract, which means that is eligible to sign an extension this offseason. As a result, GM Julien BriseBois discussed that with reporters.

Here’s what BriseBois had to say on the matter:

“I talked to his agent… just very preliminary. We’re going to circle back once we have time to debrief here. But, obviously, we’d love to keep Victor going forward. He’s an elite defenseman. He’s one of those special, all-time players and all-time great Tampa Bay Lightning and Bolt. He’s still super productive, and I have no reason to believe that’s not going to be the case going forward. We have a better understanding of where the cap is, at least now and next year. There is a new CBA that’s going to come in at some point. There are rumors of expansion drafts. We’re trying to factor all that in, but the plan would be to keep Victor going forward, obviously.”

BriseBois on Victor Hedman, who is entering the last year of his contract in 2024-25: "I talked to his agent yesterday, just very preliminary. We're going to circle back once we have time to debrief here. But, obviously, we'd love to keep Victor going forward. He's an elite…

— Chris Krenn (@Chris_Krenn) May 1, 2024