The St. Louis Blues have announced three minor signings, adding some depth to the organization. Matthew Peca, Nathan Todd and Charlie Lindgren have all agreed to one-year, two-way contracts.
Peca, 28, spent most of this season playing with the Belleville Senators, but does have 78 NHL games under his belt. A seventh-round pick of the Lightning in 2011, he has shown a strong offensive ability at the college and AHL level. Even in his limited NHL time the 5’8″ forward has 20 points, but likely won’t get much of an opportunity to play at that level in St. Louis.
Instead, Peca and Todd are likely ticketed for the AHL, where they can provide some scoring depth for the Springfield Thunderbirds. Todd hasn’t ever played in the NHL, but did score 32 points in 36 games for the Manitoba Moose last season.
The interesting name of the bunch is Lindgren, if only because the Blues’ goaltending depth chart isn’t very deep. The team appears to be going into next season with the sam Jordan Binnington–Ville Husso duo they had this year, but beyond that, only two 20-year-old prospects are under contract. That would mean Lindgren is coming in as the third-string option after spending nearly the entire 2020-21 campaign on the taxi squad.
Now 27, the undrafted Lindgren has appeared in 24 NHL games over the years and has a .907 save percentage. His numbers in the AHL during that same stretch have actually been worse, but he’s it appears as though he could be in line for some more NHL action if the Blues run into any injuries. At the very least, he’ll give the team an experienced option in the minor leagues.
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