Bruins sign Alberts for 2 years, $2.5m

As the Bruins' fifth-round pick in the 2001 draft, Andrew Alberts meets general manager Peter Chiarelli's definition of a "glue guy," the mid-tier homegrown player who fills out the roster.

Yesterday, that glue guy stuck his name on a two-year, $2.5 million contract, a significant bump on his $661,300 salary last season. Alberts would have been a restricted free agent due a one-year qualifying offer of $694,365 without a new deal.

"Boston is where I wanted to be," said Alberts, who will be paid $1.1 million in 2007-08 and $1.4 million in 2008-09. "It's nice to know I have a place to be for two years."

The 6-foot-4-inch, 218-pound defenseman, who turns 26 June 30, completed his second NHL season, recording 10 assists in 76 games (he missed six games with shoulder and hamstring injuries) while racking up a team-high 124 penalty minutes. Alberts landed 156 hits, third most on the team, while blocking 112 shots, also third on the team.

"They liked the fact that I played a physical, tough game and made it tough on opponents," said Alberts.

Alberts played alongside Zdeno Chara on Boston's top defensive pairing early in the season. But in the second half, Alberts's performance tailed off, and he was on the third pairing at times. According to coach Dave Lewis, Alberts thought too much instead of making simple plays and took himself out of position by attempting big hits.

"He's still on a learning curve," said Chiarelli. "The team struggled in the last quarter and his struggles preceded that, but he's got too many things that are positive to ignore. And he really cares about the game."

Alberts, who played four seasons at Boston College, most recently played with Bruins teammates Phil Kessel and Brandon Bochenski for Team USA at the World Championship in Russia. The native of Eden Prairie, Minn., is back in his home state, where he plans to resume skating next month.

"In the back of your mind, you always want to have some security," said Alberts, who said Chiarelli and agent Neil Sheehy started talks about a week and a half ago. "It's nice to know it's happened, it's over, and it's not weighing on your mind."

Fluto Shinzawa can be reached at FShinzawa@globe.com.