The St. Louis Blues have signed goaltender Brian Elliott to a three-year $7.5 million contract extension ($2.5 million AAV). Elliott was scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent this summer.
When the Blues made their big trade deadline deal to pick up goaltender Ryan Miller from the Buffalo Sabres, many analysts picked the team to win the Stanley Cup. However the team struggled down the stretch with an eight game losing streak to end the year, and then after winning the first two games of their playoff series against Chicago, the Blues lost four in a row and suffered a disappointing end to the season.
Now the team has decided that Miller would not be the team’s main goalie going forward. Instead Blues general manager Doug Armstrong has decided to go with a tandem of Brian Elliott and Jake Allen between the pipes for St. Louis, and Ryan Miller will become a free agent on July 1st, unless the Blues are able to trade his rights prior to that date.
“We took a calculated gamble of bringing in Ryan and we didn’t have the success that we needed as an organization,” Armstrong said in a conference call. “Certainly it was not all reflected on Ryan. It’s a team game and as an organization we’re all responsible, but it was additional payments necessary to Buffalo if we signed Ryan that would have basically meant moving back a full round in the draft from a first to a second round and adding a third-round pick. We just felt at this time it was better for us to go with Elliott and go with Jake Allen. They provide us with a good tandem as we move forward.”
Elliott, 29, has gone 55-24-7 in three seasons with the Blues since signing with the Blues prior to the 2011-12 season. He was 18-6-4 with a 1.96 GAA and .922 save percentage this season but did not see any action in the playoffs.
“When I talked to him at the end of the season his desire was to go to an organization where he could compete as a No. 1 goaltender and now we provide him with that,” Armstrong said of Elliott. “He came here as an unknown and if you look at his save percentage and his goals-against average and his win-loss record, his numbers are very good. He’s been through the maturation.
“When we got to the trade deadline, we didn’t make a move because we didn’t believe in [Elliott]. We made a move because we thought Miller could make a difference and take us to the Stanley Cup. That hasn’t happened and now we move forward as an organization. Brian Elliott has done everything asked of him.”
The 23-year-old Allen, spent most of the season with the Chicago Wolves in the AHL where he was 33-16-3 with 2.03 GAA and .928 save percentage. He did not get any NHL time this season but played 15 games in 2012-13 going 9-4-0 with a 2.46 GAA and .905 save percentage.
For the latest sports injury news, check out our friends at Sports Injury Alert.
Thank you for reading. Please take a moment to follow me on Twitter – @lastwordBkerr. Support LWOS by following us on Twitter – @LastWordOnSport – and “liking” our Facebook page.
