The Nashville are planning to keep their captain around for much of the next decade.It was announced Tuesday that the Predators signed defenseman to an eight-year max extension worth $9.059 annually, totaling around $72 million, according to TSN's Pierre LeBrun. It makes Josi the third-highest paid defenseman in the NHL. Roman Josis AAV in the new deal is $9.059 M (wears No. 59 of course). The contract includes $33.75 million in signing bonus money and, as discu sed before, a full NMC for the entire eight years. Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) The extension brings a ma sive payday and a big raise for Josi, who is currently in the final year of his current contract carrying a $4 million annual cap hit. He will will turn 30 years old before the new deal kicks in next summer. It's a gamble by Nashville to ink Josi to Julius Erving Jersey a huge cap hit that late into his 30s, especially when you look at a team like the and how they've been handcuffed by the big-money, long-term extension they gave to pillar defenseman when he was 30. The drop-off can be steep and sudden, and it can leave teams in a bad spot for years.But the Predators love what they've seen from Josi over the past few years, both on and off the ice. He has been a pivotal piece on their back end for years and was named the eighth captain in team history before the start of the 2017-2018 season. The two-time All-Star steadily eats minutes on the Preds' top defensive pair and has produced 50-plus points and finished top-10 in Norris voting in four of the past five seasons. Josi has had a great start to this season as well, racking up five goals (tied for a team lead) and eight a sists through his first 11 games of the season. Tony Bradley Jersey