Report: Coyotes, Ekman-Larsson nearing 8-year extension

Oliver Ekman-Larsson appears close to putting pen to paper on a deal to stay in the desert for the long term.

The Arizona Coyotes and the star defenseman are nearing an agreement on an eight-year contract extension, multiple sources told Craig Morgan of 98.7 FM Arizona Sports on Monday night.

Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported earlier Monday that a few teams were indicating Ekman-Larsson was off the market.

The two sides have been discussing an eight-year extension with an average annual value of $8.25 million as far back as last month, when Morgan first reported it.

It's not clear if those are the same parameters being negotiated now, but the Coyotes feel confident enough about the potential extension that they have indeed told other teams he's not available, as Morgan added Monday night.

Ekman-Larsson has one year left on the six-year, $33-million deal he inked in the spring of 2013.

He can't officially sign an extension until July 1, 2018.