Detroit Red Wings winger Dan Cleary may be sidelined with a broken jaw, but that didn’t prevent him from re-signing with the club.

Various sources report Cleary re-signed on Tuesday to a five-year, $14 million contract, which will count as $2.8 million per season against the club’s cap during that period.

Cleary’s earned this new deal, having come a long way from being considered little more than a fourth-line checking forward who was invited to a training camp tryout by the Wings following the 2004-05 lockout.

Prior to that, Cleary had bounced from Chicago to Edmonton to Phoenix, giving little indication that he could potentially blossom into a scoring forward.

Even his first season with the Wings back in 2005-06 was unspectacular, notching only 3 goals and 15 points in a checking line role in 77 regular season games.

Last season however was a breakout performance for Cleary, potting 20 goals and 40 points in 71 games, and he played well in the heat of post-season battle, with 12 points in 18 games in the 2007 playoffs.

This season Cleary was on pace for his best performance to date, with 20 goals and 40 points in 57 games and appeared on pace for potentially a 30-goal, 60-point season prior to breaking his jaw in an early-February game against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Cleary and Red Wings management had been in contract negotiations prior to his injury. It’s apparent that by signing him to his new long-term contract that they have considerable faith in the 29-year-old as a late-blooming top-six winger.

He’s expected to return from injury in early April, in time to join the Wings for the 2008 playoffs, and if his performance in last year’s post-season is any indication, he’ll be a valuable contributor once he gets back into game shape.