Brian Dumoulin had a breakout playoff campaign last season as he led all Pittsburgh Penguins skaters in ice time. 

He was rewarded for his play on Monday with a six-year, $24.6 million contract from the Penguins.

Dumoulin revealed after he signed his contract that he broke and subsequently re-broke his hand multiple times as the Penguins repeated as Stanley Cup champions.

The 25-year-old managed to play in all 25 postseason contests despite breaking his right hand in Game 5 of his team's first round series against the Columbus Blue Jackets. 

As he played through the injury, he re-broke his hand multiple times over the next month. 

“It was hurting pretty bad,” Dumoulin told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “That’s when you have to try to play through it the best you can.

“It would get better for a little bit. I’d do a cross-check then it would break again. It was a process.”

Dumoulin, who became a constant in the Penguins lineup during the 2015-16 season, said he couldn't count how many times he re-broke his hand during the playoffs. He managed to avoid surgery as the break eventually healed with rest after the playoffs.

“It was tough to play with it, but obviously everybody had injuries,” Dumoulin said. “It’s all healed up now. They were deciding on surgery or not at the end of the season, but doctors saw a little bit of healing. We gave it about three weeks, and I kind of have been testing it out the last week. I’ve skated, and there have been no problems. I’m happy about it.”

With Dumoulin signed, the Penguins have five defenceman locked up for at least the next two seasons in Kris Letang, Justin Schultz, Olli Maata, Dumoulin and free agent signee Matt Hunwick.

According to CapFriendly, the team has $6.28 million in cap space with Connor Sheary still to sign. Sheary is scheduled for arbitration on August 4.