GRAND FORKS, N.D. – University of North Dakota defenseman Christian Wolanin has signed a two-year, entry-level contract with the Ottawa Senators and will forgo his senior season of eligibility, the National Hockey League organization announced on Wednesday morning.

Wolanin, a fourth-round pick (107th overall) of Ottawa in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft, is expected to join the Senators this week.

A native of Detroit, Mich., Wolanin became the first defenseman since James Patrick in 1982-83 to lead UND in scoring after racking up a career-high 12 goals and a team-leading 35 points. His 12 goals rank second among NCAA defensemen and were one shy of the UND single-season record for defensemen. His eight power-play goals were also one shy of the school record for defensemen.

Earlier this month, Wolanin was named to the National Collegiate Hockey Conference's All-NCHC Second Team and was a finalist for the NCHC Offensive Defenseman of the Year award.

Wolanin finished his collegiate career with 22 goals and 72 points in 109 career games. His 0.66 career points-per-game average was the third-best this century by a UND defenseman, trailing only Travis Roche (0.88 from 1999-2001) and Chay Genoway (0.76 from 2006-11).

Wolanin follows in the footsteps of his father, Craig, who spent 13 seasons in the NHL as a defenseman with New Jersey, Quebec, Colorado, Tampa Bay and Toronto.

Wolanin's Career Statistics:

Year          GP     G      A   PTS      PIM      PPG    SHG  GWG    +/-

2015-16     32      4    11      15         20          0         0         2     +16

2016-17     37      6    16      22         37          1         0         0       +5

2017-18     40    12    23      35         50          8         0         0     +12

Totals      109    22    50      72       107          9         0         2     +33