Nashville Predators President of Hockey Operations/General Manager David Poile announced the signing of 2008 second-round draft pick Roman Josi to a three-year entry-level contract Friday.
Josi, 19, helped SC Bern win both the Swiss League regular season and playoff titles in 2009-10. During the 2009-10 regular season, Josi ranked second among defensemen in points per game (.81). In the postseason, Josi (6-foot-1, 198 pounds) led all defensemen and tied for fourth overall in goals (6), in addition to ranking second at the position and tied for ninth among all skaters in points (13).
Josi, a native of Bern, led Swiss defensemen with 3 points (1 goal, 2 assists) and a plus-3 rating in seven games in his second appearance at the World Championships in May. He has also played three World Junior Championships and two U-18 World Championships. Josi was named to the Swiss team for the 2010 Olympics, but could not participate due to injury.
He was selected in the second round, No. 38, of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft. Josi will attend Predators training camp in September, and is expected to play his first North American season in 2010-11.