MONTREAL

So long Sebastian: Hurricanes match Canadiens' offer for Aho

CTV Montreal

Kevin Gould CTV News Montreal News Editor

Published Tuesday, July 2, 2019 12:31PM EDT

Carolina Hurricanes center Sebastian Aho (20), of Finland, celebrates his goal during the second period of Game 7 of an NHL hockey first-round playoff series next to Washington Capitals center Nicklas Backstrom (19), of Sweden, Wednesday, April 24, 2019, in Washington. The Hurricanes won 4-3 in double overtime. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

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The Carolina Hurricanes will match the Montreal Canadiens' hostile bid for free-agent Sebastian Aho.

Don Waddell, President and General Manager of the Hurricanes, announced Tuesday that the team would match the offer made by the Canadiens on Monday.

The Canadiens shocked the NHL a few hours after the opening of the free-agent market on Monday by offering a five-year contract worth an average of US $ 8.454 million per year to Aho.

By matching the offer sheet, the Hurricanes will pay Aho $42.27 million over five years.

"Sebastian is one of the best players in the league and the centrepiece of what we're building here. We've spoken to him throughout this process and he's made it clear that he wants to be in Raleigh and be a part of this organization," wrote Waddell in a statement.

The Hurricanes had seven days to match the offer, otherwise they would have received a first round pick, a second round pick and a third round pick in return for Aho.