The St. Louis Blues and feisty Swedish centermen Oskar Sundqvist have agreed to a four-year deal worth $2.75 million AAV.
Oskar Sundqvist showed his worth during the season last year as he helped propel the St. Louis Blues by leading their fourth line which became known by many as the Blues shutdown forward line.
With Sundqvist locked up for the next four years, the Blues are now set to return all but three key pieces from their run this past June. Those players are hometown hero Patrick Maroon and restricted free agents Ivan Barbashev and Joel Edmundson.
With the Blues currently set to have roughly $4.37 million in cap space, they will look to sign both Barbashev and Edmundson at some point before camp breaks later this fall.
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Last season, Edmundson made $3 million, and while he may seek a similar paycheck, the same cannot be said for Barbashev.
Barbashev will be looking for something north of $1.2 Million. With the following moves to be coming in the next month, it is safe to say that the Blues will be ready to continue their dominance.
Sundqvist and Barbashev played much of the playoffs and tail end of the regular season alongside veteran Alexander Steen.
The three linemates quickly became known to the rest of the league as the most defensive-minded line the Blues had, and one of the hardest to face in the league.
Sundqvist will look to continue his important role with the Blues as he looks to build off of his impressive 40 points over the regular season and playoffs, after coming into this season with just nine points in his career.
His 31 regular-season points ranked in the top-10 on the team and the 25-year-old forward finished tied for fifth on the team with 14 goals in 74 games played.
Sundqvist was a player who was once thought of by many fans as the player who was traded for fan-favorite Ryan Reaves, and has come in and worked his way up to gain respect from fans and teammates alike.
With this team-friendly extension, it is safe to assume that Sundqvist is enjoying his role as a fourth-line centerman and knows his role in relation to the rest of the team. Having players like this are vital to having a championship-caliber team.