There is another name to add to ºüÀêÊÓƵ' depth chart on defense: Ryan Suter.
Suter, 39, was the oldest player in the NHL last season before he was bought out of the final year of his contract by the Stars. The deal with the Blues is for one year at the league minimum $775,000 but also includes performance bonuses up to $2.225 million.
Suter will earn $1.725 million in various games played bonuses and will earn $500,000 if he meets all games played benchmarks and the Blues make the playoffs, according to a source.
Suter is eligible for performance bonuses since he is at least 35 years old and he signed a one-year contract.
Last season, Suter had 17 points in 82 games while averaging 18:56 of ice time. It was the least that he's played since his rookie season in 2005-06, when he averaged 17:21 a game.
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By signing in ºüÀêÊÓƵ, Suter continues his tour of Central Division teams, having previously played for Nashville (2005-12), Minnesota (2012-21) and Dallas (2021-24). Suter was also previously bought out by the Wild in 2021.
With Suter now included on the left side of the Blues' defensive depth chart, ºüÀêÊÓƵ has to work through a logjam on the back end.
On the left side alone, the Blues have Suter, Torey Krug ($6.5 million cap hit), Nick Leddy ($4 million), Scott Perunovich ($1.15 million), Pierre-Olivier Joseph ($950,000) and Tyler Tucker ($800,000) under contract.
On the right side, there's Colton Parayko ($6.5 million), Justin Faulk ($6.5 million) and Matthew Kessel ($800,000).
The addition of Suter could also point to the possibility the Blues carry eight defensemen on the NHL roster, which would limit their forward group to 13.