Bruins sign Thornton to three-year contract.

BOSTON (AP) The Boston Bruins on Thursday signed their star center Joe Thornton to a new three-year contract.
Terms of the deal with Thornton, a restricted free agent, were not announced.
``Joe's signing was a priority and we are again making clear how much he means to this franchise,'' general manager Mike O'Connell said in a statement. ``He is among the upper echelon of players in our league and he just continues to get better.''
Thornton, 26, has scored more than 20 goals in each of his last five NHL seasons, including two with 30 or more. He has led the Bruins in scoring in each of the last two seasons.
He enters this season with 160 career goals and 261 assists.