Blues Sign Scandella to Four-Year, $13.1 Million Extension

The St. Louis Blues have checked a box off their offseason to-do list, inking pending restricted free agent defenseman Marco Scandella to a four-year, $13.1 million contract extension.

Blues Bolster their Blue Line

Scandella, 30, appeared in 11 games for the defending Cup-champion Blues prior to the NHL shutdown in mid-March, posting one assist and skating an average of 20:18 with Colton Parayko on the Blues’ shutdown pair.

The Blues acquired the left-shot d-man at the trade deadline from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for a couple of draft picks. One of the main reasons they dealt for the 6-foot-3, 208-pound defenseman was to mitigate the loss of top-four blueliner Jay Bouwmeetser — who suffered a cardiac event in February — and to add a steady veteran for the stretch run that was halted last month due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

A Montreal native, Scandella hadn’t been in his hometown long; the Canadiens had only acquired him from the Buffalo Sabres in early January.

In 62 total games this season between the Blues, Canadiens, and Sabres, Scandella recorded four goals and nine assists for 13 points, dished out 78 hits, and blocked 60 shots.

Scandella Can Finally Unpack

No longer will he be living out of a suitcase: the 10-year veteran has a contract — who was drafted by the Minnesota Wild in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft and spent seven seasons with the franchise — that will keep him in St. Louis through the 2023-24 season, barring a trade.

Scandella is the fifth defenseman the Blues have on the books for 2020-21, joining Parayko, Justin Faulk, Carl Gunnarsson, and Robert Bortuzzo.

Related: Projecting the Blues’ 2020-21 Blue Line

For his career, Scandella has 42 goals and 95 assists for 137 points in 580 career games.