The Edmonton Oilers signed rookie defenceman Tom Gilbert to a six-year, $24-million US contract on Friday.

The six-foot-three, 210-pound blue-liner racked up 33 points (13 goals, 20 assists) to finish second in scoring among rookie NHL defencemen in 2007-08.

Gilbert also blocked more shots than any other freshman while playing in all 82 games for Edmonton this season.

He joins a sizable crop of young prospects who have signed long-term deals with the Oilers, including Ales Hemsky, Dustin Penner and Sheldon Souray.

Next month, he will compete for the U.S. national team at the world hockey championships in Quebec and Nova scotia.

Gilbert collected six points in 12 games for Edmonton in 2006-07, but played the rest of that year with the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins of the American Hockey League.

Before that, he played four seasons with the University of Wisconsin Badgers, including the team's 2005-06 U.S. college championship season.

With his new contract, the Minneapolis native will play for Edmonton through the 2013-14 season.

With files from Canadian Press