In what could be a sneaky-good deal, the St. Louis Blues signed free agent forward Noel Acciari today. Acciari signs a one-year deal worth $1.25 million.
Blues announce the signing of center Noel Acciari to a one-year, $1.25 million dollar contract. #stlblues
— Jeremy Rutherford (@jprutherford) July 13, 2022
Blues Sign Free Agent Centre Noel Acciari
Noel Acciari is a fascinating player, breaking into the league as an undrafted free agent at age 24. The Boston Bruins took a chance on him in the 2015 offseason. That year and the next he spent shuttling between Providence and Boston before getting a permanent spot on their fourth line in 2017-18. His wrecking-ball approach to the game endeared him to the team quickly, though it has led to some injury history.
Acciari eventually developed into the player he is now: a penalty-killing centre who can chip in goals. In his four full seasons, he has been in the running for the NHL’s VERY unofficial “Cy Young” Award twice. He scored 10 goals with just one assist over 60 games in 2017-18, then in 2019-20 scored 20 times with seven assists in 66 games.
What This Means
That injury history has kept Acciari off the ice for the majority of last season, unfortunately. He came back to the Panthers forjust 20 games, scoring three goals and eight points. Florida is a difficult team to crack, however, so he was also a frequent scratch even after returning from injury in February. So why would anyone take a chance on the 30-year-old unrestricted free agent?
While he shouldn’t be expected to score another 20 goals, the possibility that he can remains. He is a hard-hitting, defensive centre who can slide into the bottom-six with a minimum of fuss. For a team wanting a little insurance or to buff up their penalty kill Acciari is a cheap and easy acquisition. He has 45 games of Stanley Cup playoff experience in his six seasons. It’s going to be tough to surprise him.
And maybe, just maybe, he’ll suddenly have 18.5% shooting again.
Main Photo: SUNRISE, FL – MARCH 15: Goaltender Kevin Lankinen #32 of the Chicago Blackhawks stops a shot by Noel Acciari #55 of the Florida Panthers at the BB&T Center on March 15, 2021 in Sunrise, Florida. (Photo by Joel Auerbach/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
