A pending free agent, defenseman Cam Fowler has signed a three-year extension with the St. Louis Blues, per team announcement.
Per Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, the deal is set at a $6.1MM AAV, with Jeremy Rutherford of the Athletic adding that it is a flat contract with no variation year-to-year. It will take Fowler through his age 36 season, and comes in above the projected value of $5.4MM, according to AFP Analytics.
Fowler, 33, was acquired last December in exchange for fringe prospect Jérémie Biakabutuka and a 2027 second-round pick, in a deal that was not totally expected given the Blues’ stock of veteran left handed defensemen. However, it proved to be fruitful, as Fowler was a great fit wearing the Note, with 36 points in 51 games, and a +19, filling the void left from Torey Krug and his likely career-ending injury.
After a season in which the Blues exceeded expectations, pushing the President’s Trophy winning Winnipeg Jets to the brink in the first round of the playoffs, change on the blue line has been a point of emphasis. Out went Nick Leddy and Ryan Suter, allowing for a larger role for Philip Broberg, along with the acquisition of promising young defender Logan Mailloux.
Now with Fowler locked up as well, the Blues have built up a formidable core on both ends, which are all signed for the foreseeable future. The veteran offensive defenseman will continue to lead the Blues powerplay attack, and will be leaned on to mentor Broberg, Mailloux, as well as emerging youngster Matthew Kessel and eventually, top prospect Adam Jiricek.
Having fallen into their laps at 12th overall during the 2010 NHL Draft, Fowler quickly became a vital member of the Ducks throughout the 2010s. Making the team right out of camp as a rookie, the smooth-skating defenseman notched 40 points, and never looked back, having never played a game in the AHL. Fowler earned an eight-year extension worth $6.5MM per season in 2017. The Windsor, Ontario native continued to produce through thick and thin for Anaheim for fifteen seasons. Finally after 17 games in the black and orange last season, and with the contract nearing an end, Anaheim made the difficult decision to deal their second-longest tenured player, retaining $2.5MM per year in the process.
Although a slight decrease in annual value, Fowler’s resurgence undoubtedly heightened his value at 33-years-old, and the Blues are surely relieved to reach an agreement on their key defenseman before the season has begun.