Patrik Berglund re-signs with St. Louis Blues for three years, $11.1 million
The St. Louis Blues are expected to be players on the trade market this offseason for a veteran center, but on the eve of the NHL Draft starting on Friday evening, the club re-signed one of their restricted free agents, coming to terms with Patrick Berglund.
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Berglund, 26, signed a three-year deal worth $11.1 million for a $3.7 million average annual value, according to Jeremy Rutherford of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, after scoring 14 goals and recording 18 assists in 78 games in his sixth season in the NHL for the No. 4 seed in the Western Conference.
Berglund, however, didn’t end the season on a high note as he went scoreless in four postseason games with a minus-seven rating after missing the first two games in their first round meeting with the Chicago Blackhawks after injuring his shoulder in the penultimate regular season game.
Shifting from center to wing, Berglund never got into a rhythm this season and as a result has been subjected to hearing his name bandied about in trade rumors.
Blues general manager Doug Armstrong was asked about the interest around the league in Berglund and if he could be a potential trade candidate for a player like Jason Spezza or free agent center Paul Stastny.
“Yeah, he would have a lot of interest around the league,” Armstrong said. “But he has a lot of interest with me, too.”
Rutherford is under the impression that the contract extension signed today won’t guarantee that Berglund is in a St. Louis sweater next season, as the new deal would prevent a potential trading partner from being timid about trading for a player with an uncertain contract status.