St. Louis Blues sign center Andy McDonald to 4-year, $18.8 million contract extension
The Blues announced today the re-signing of center Andy McDonald to a four-year extension. The deal is worth $18.8 million; he’ll be paid $5.2 million each of the first two seasons, and $4.2 million each of the last two.
To celebrate the contract, McDonald plans to play Tuesday night vs. Vancouver. McDonald has been out of the lineup since mid-November with a fractured ankle, but he was full bore in today’s practice and hopes to be available tomorrow.
Here are some numbers for McDonald:
* He has played in 16 games this season, posting six goals and 12 assists before suffering a broken ankle in mid-November.
* In 65 games with the Blues, McDonald has 20 goals and 34 assists for 54 points.
* In his career, McDonald has played 456 games, posting 112 goals and 201 assists.
McDonald was set to become an unrestricted free agent after the season. The Blues made McDonald their No. 1 priority for a couple of reasons:
* On a young team, McDonald gives the Blues an experienced veteran. He won a Stanley Cup with Anaheim in 2007.
* McDonald gives the Blues qualified No. 1 center. Patrik Berglund is emerging into an all-star caliber player, but now the Blues don’t have to rush Berglund into that role. With both of them, the Blues are as deep at the position skill-wise as they’ve been in years.
* McDonald is one of the fastest players in the league, and the Blues need his speed.
* McDonald also brings character. He’s one of the most well-liked and well-respected players in the dressing room.
Here’s Blues owner Dave Checketts on the signing of McDonald:
“Andy is a complete pro and he is a guy that we want to mentor our young kids,” Checketts said. “He’s a sensational hockey player. When he is healthy, he’s very exciting to watch. So, he’s a guy that we want in the room and we want him for a very long time.”
A couple of more things to keep in mind regarding the signing:
* This makes the McDonald-Doug Weight trade even more appealing. The Blues would not have brought Weight back this season, and they would have had no shot at McDonald in free agency this summer. The fact that he finished his current contract here, and got a taste for the city and locker room made this deal possible.
* The Blues make another point that if a player plays well, they will reward them. You can point to Brad Boyes, Eric Brewer, Barret Jackman, etc.
* If Paul Kariya returns to 100 percent health and the Blues want to re-sign him after next season, the final year of his contract, having McDonald in the fold will help. Kariya enjoys playing with McDonald.
JR
Great blog JR.
You may want to correct this sentance though:
“* On a young team, McDonald gives the Blues an inexperienced veteran. He won a Stanley Cup with Anaheim in 2007.”
I’m pretty sure you meant to say experienced instead of inexperienced.
I would like Kariya for an extra year or two, but not for 6 mill a season.
I like the blog and the updates too.
When I read that sentence I just cracked up. That’s hilarious, imagine JD saying, “yeah, we really like have an inexperinced veteran in the room”. “You just can’t quantify how much Andy’s inexperience brings to the team”.
Sorry, JR had to give you a hard time.
Thanks for the update!
Great deal for all parties involved. Once again Blues management steps up and gets the deal done. Nice to see that AMac believes in what the Blues are doing. A biscuit in the basket tomorrow night would be a nice way to celebrate.
You really have to love the direction the Blues are going! The young talent is really coming together, and the veterans on the team are contributing. I also love how the fans have responded, selling out Saturday night, when technically the Blues have the worst record in the Western Conference?! The fans, the ownership all see and recognize the team that is coming together, and it’s an exciting time!!!
Been a Blues fan a very long time(early 70’s). Starting to think I’ll grow old and die and never see them hoist the cup. Is this how a Cub fan feels? And this team has stunk pretty bad since the strike.
BUT - I feel better about the future of this team then I ever have. I LOVE the direction it’s been heading since Davidson came on board. We’ve got some excellent young talent getting some experience. We’ve got 2 potential all-stars on defense in Johnson and Pietrangelo still to come. We have Ian Cole and Lars Eller progressing. Our goaltending looks in great shape for the future.
This team is going to win some hockey games. I give this team 2 years and we’ll be in the top 3 of the conference. Even with a dismantled lineup we may have seen the last of the cellar for years to come.
Knock on wood..
Why on earth would the Blues want to bring Kariya back after next season?