With one of the NHL’s deepest bluelines, St. Louis didn’t appear a team in need of defensive reinforcements -- but that’s exactly what the club got on Wednesday, signing former Calgary rearguard Chris Butler to a one-year, two-way deal worth $650,000 at the NHL level.
Butler, 27, has spent the last three seasons with the Flames after being acquired from Buffalo in the Robyn Regehr trade of 2011 and was a major presence for Calgary last year -- he appeared in all 82 games (the only Flame to do so) while averaging over 20 minutes a night, finishing with 16 points.
With the Blues, Butler will be in a fight for a roster spot behind Alex Pietrangelo, Jay Bouwmeester, Kevin Shattenkirk, Carl Gunnarsson, Barret Jackman, Jordan Leopold and Ian Cole.
Finally, it’s worth noting that Butler -- who has represented the United States internationally three times, including the 2013 World Championships -- was born and played his high school hockey in St. Louis, so this new deal represents a homecoming.