Blues re-sign Leddy to 4-year deal with $4M AAV

The St. Louis Blues and defenseman Nick Leddy agreed to a new four-year contract worth $16 million, the team announced Wednesday.

Leddy was briefly a free agent before finalizing his agreement to return to St. Louis. The 31-year-old finished the 2021-22 campaign with the Blues after opening the season with the Detroit Red Wings.

"I think solidifying our top four on defense was very important for us," Blues general manager Doug Armstrong said, according to Lou Korac of NHL.com. "I was very comfortable with the seven (defensemen) that we had last year before we got Nick, and we became a little bit better balanced team with Nick, and we're happy to have him back, too."

Leddy has been a steady presence on the blue line for much of his career. He broke into the NHL with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2010-11 and helped them win a Stanley Cup in 2012-13. He eventually signed a seven-year contract with the New York Islanders.

The Minnesota native finished last season with three goals and 21 assists. He scored twice in 20 games with the Blues in the regular season before adding a goal and four assists in the playoffs.