as a general rule these kind of extensions are in the works for quite some time. when there were many here suggesting during pre season and camp that the caps move chimera in order to keep perreault, this deal was already down to the small details.
so, his solid offensive performance is more likely a result of knowing is future than about playing for one.
edit: its helpful to keep the actual timeline for these things in mind. he didn't sign the contract today. it was signed in recent weeks and spent some time at the league getting its approval. then the team announced it when they wanted to have some time to address it with the media and get some headlines over it.
its just a guess, but McPhee likely decided to keep Chimera over the off season and opened talks for Fishman after the ufa period.
I think most people that post here understand that a contract is not offered and signed and announced all at once. I certainly hope most people, if not all, understand how this all works.
One poster, raises hand, suggested trading Chimera for some time, having nothing to do with whether to keep Perreault or not. As to the contract, as a general rule, I'm not a fan of 35+ contracts and don't care for these early re-signings. Is the 2 x 2 great or terrible, it's about what I'd expect.