Confirmed with Link: Blues sign Steen to 4yr extenstion.

[542365]

Alittle too high on the money imo but the term is fair. His style of play will age well.

He's a 60 point player and every year is a UFA year. If he would've hit the market he could've gotten something at least starting with a 6 if not a 7 if someone really went all out. 5.75M is anything but high. Anything less than 6.5M would be good honestly.

It would really be nice for him to play 80 games this year though.

 

[STL fan in MN]

Very fair deal. I'm happy with it. There's a little risk with it given his injury history and age but he signed for quite a bit lower than he could've had he tested the UFA market. He's better than Backes but we got him for cheaper. Deal!

 

[Ranksu]

Well his last year we are only paying him $3.5 in actuall money so it's not that bad

Very good deal by Army. Have to give him tap for this one.

Here's the breakdown of Steen's four-year extension: $7 million, $7 million, $5.5 million and $3.5 million.

 

[Oberyn]

One year longer than I would have liked but still a great deal.

 

[KirkOut]

Nice. My Alex Steen tshirt jersey remains my only non-obsolete blues swag

 

[Ranksu]

One year longer than I would have liked but still a great deal.

3.5mill.$ his last year when Steen is 37-years old. I doubt he's garbage at that point. Thous his father (Thomas) end his NHL career at 34-years old. Not sure why, but I assume big injury.

 

[Eye of Ra]

is he better at wing or center?

 

[High n Wide]

I'm really happy to have Steen signed for four more years. He's a great player and a good veteran to have around the team. With Backes and Brouwer walking, I don't think there was a scenario where the Blues didn't plan to re-sign him, but I'm happy to have it done.

I'm all for the passing the torch and the general transition to a younger core group, but it's important to have some dependable vets and I think Steen is pretty high up on that list. There seemed to be a mutual benefit to him staying, so I'm happy. He would've gotten much more as a UFA.

 

[Alklha]

is he better at wing or center?

Wing. Playing at centre impacts his offensive production.

Having Steen-Berglund on the same line and going between LW and C might actually work long term. We just don't have a right wing that really complements that.

 

[MissouriMook]

is he better at wing or center?

Definitely wing, specifically LW. The coaching staff has been set on fitting a square peg into a round hole, trying desperately to move Steen to Center for the last two years. He is just better as a winger, and personally I like him better on RW than at C, but his best position is definitely LW.

 

[MissouriMook]

Wing. Playing at centre impacts his offensive production.

Having Steen-Berglund on the same line and going between LW and C might actually work long term. We just don't have a right wing that really complements that.

What about me?

 

[Stealth JD]

One year longer than I would have liked but still a great deal.

My initial thoughts as well....though tough to complain.

 

[SirPaste]

Wing. Playing at centre impacts his offensive production.

Having Steen-Berglund on the same line and going between LW and C might actually work long term. We just don't have a right wing that really complements that.

I'm not gonna hold my breath but hopefully Jaskin develops into that RW

 

[Robb_K]

I like it, too. I was expecting $6mil per year.

 

[Klank Loves You]

Pretty darn good signing. Much happier than money went to Steen instead of Backes/Brouwer.

 

[Splatter]

Pretty darn good signing. Much happier than money went to Steen instead of Backes/Brouwer.

Same here.

In the conference today, Armstrong explained why he was willing to make risks with a longer term Steen deal and not Backes.

“I like where we’re at. We’ve got some young guys that are going to move up, that bring a different dynamic to our team, and we’ll be leaning on them a lot more than we might have in the past. They’re not just ready, but they’re itching to have that responsibility. It’s up to myself and some of the veteran guys to help them along the way, but they’re ready.â€

One veteran who had held that responsibility was Backes, who went to Boston in free agency. Both Backes and Steen are 32, and while the Blues wouldn’t match the Bruins’ five-year deal for Backes at $6 million per season, they are giving Steen a similar deal that will take him to age 37.

Armstrong cited the difference in Steen’s style of play. The more physical Backes has 2,061 hits in the NHL and Steen has 361, which could lead to a quicker decline for Backes.

“(Steen’s) style, it’s a 200-foot game, but it’s based on skating,†Armstrong said. “So he plays the game differently than a north-south and arrive there with ill-will (player). There’s always risk when you’re going out (to age 37), but he was certainly someone that I felt very comfortable that if you’re going assume these risks he’s the player that we wanted to assume it with.â€

 

[BlueDream]

Pretty much our entire core is young now. Tarasenko, Schwartz, Pietrangelo, Parayko, Fabbri, Allen, Shattenkirk... All of our best players are young besides Steen. Even Stastny at 30 isn't that old. So we can afford to give money to an older player who will stick around and be the grizzled vet for this team because every team needs one, and Steen is a great choice for that.

Even if he declines at 35-36, he's a smart player that contributes enough to not be a complete liability. This of course assuming he stays healthy, that's the only concern but whatever.

 

[2 Minute Minor]

Steen probably had enough leverage to get more. Front loaded money is better for him, and the cap hit stays reasonable. I'm pretty happy with this news.

 

[Alklha]

I'm not gonna hold my breath but hopefully Jaskin develops into that RW

I don't see Jaškin being the player that complements Steen and Berglund, I'd want to see a quality skater in that position. Mook was joking, but Perron isn't a horrible fit. At least from what we have to choose from.

Hopefully Jaškin can finally find his NHL game. If he can show signs of taking the massive leap to being a 20-20 player, I'd expect to see Fabbri-Stastny-Jaškin and Perron with Steen.

 

[TheDizee]

Should have been made the captain imo.

 

[Ranksu]

Should have been made the captain imo.

 

[mw2noobbuster]

Should have been made the captain imo.

Whoopsies.

 

[TheDizee]

he might be playing better if he was the captain. might actually care then.

 

[KirkOut]

In that case let’s make Paajarvi captain

 

[ChicagoBlues]

he might be playing better if he was the captain. might actually care then.

So much this. Steen looks apathetic out there, as if he doesn’t care.