Blues Sign Jackman to Extension

[Thrillhouse]

ST. LOUIS – St. Louis Blues President John Davidson announced today that defenseman Barret Jackman has agreed to a contract extension with the club.

“Barret has been a staple on the blueline for the Blues since his rookie season,” said Davidson. “He logs plenty of minutes per game and will continue to be a key part of our team as we move forward.”

“I have said all along that I wanted to remain in St. Louis,” said Jackman. “The Blues drafted me, I met my wife here and I want to raise a family here. I’m excited about the direction of this franchise and love playing in front of Blues fans.”

Jackman, 26, has played in 58 games with the Blues this season, recording eight points (two goals, six assists) along with 63 penalty minutes. He ranks second on the team in time on ice, averaging 21:57 a game.

Jackman has played in a total of 289 career NHL games all with St. Louis, registering 67 points (13 goals, 54 assists) along with 532 penalty minutes. He became the first Blue in franchise history to capture the Calder Memorial Trophy as the league’s most outstanding rookie in 2002-03.

The Fruitvale, British Columbia native was originally drafted by the Blues as their first round selection, 17th overall in the 1999 Entry Draft.

[JKidd]

Wow. Everything had Jackman on his way out. He rejected other offers and wasn't really too intent on staying it seemed, but in any event, HAHAHAHAHA! Poor Blues fans!

[Isles4life]

I definitely thought he was through in St. Louis. Any word on the terms?

[PsuNate1977]

Don't be surprised if this deadline is a huge bust... The big movement day is July 1st now with the Cap..

[KingKong19]

The report from a couple sources on stltoday.com forums is it's 4 years at about 3.5 million per season.

Everything that I've read is that teams aren't willing to give up as much as previous years for rental players, which brought Jackmans value down. That being said, Jackman still would've commanded atleast 4 mil a year on the open market.

As for Blues fans, it's mixed emotions. Is Jackman a top 4 defender with a ton of upside? Yes (although this year has been beyond a bad year for him). He's potentially a top defender in the league. But the Blues are loaded with defenders in Peoria(AHL) and have good defenders on the team signed for a few more years. Most of us seem to like the deal, although this hurts our chances of signing a big goal scoring FA in the off-season, which is our biggest need.

McKee is probably on his way out, along with Rucinsky. Backman as well, but I'm not sure of many teams that will jump at him.

[JKidd]

Barret Jackman won't be going anywhere at the trade deadline as the St. Louis Blues have signed the defenceman to a four year contract extension worth $14.4 million.

Jackman will earn $3.6 million in each of the four years of the deal.

More...

[KingKong19]

Not that bad of a deal compared to what Boyle just got.

[bengino]

Originally Posted by KingKong19

Not that bad of a deal compared to what Boyle just got.

yes but Boyle is a much better defenseman then what Jackman will ever be... good signing either way, may seem steep, but with the price some guys got last off season, seems like a bargain.

[bustoff]

I'm glad he resigned as long as he plays with an edge. Some games when he's hitting, he's more in the flow of the game. Other games he's getting skated around like a pylon.