Blues trade for Cam Fowler, send prospect and pick to Ducks

St. Louis Blues have acquired veteran defenseman Cam Fowler in a trade with the Anaheim Ducks.

The Blues announced Saturday that they send defensive prospect Jeremie Biakabutuka and a 2027 second-round pick to the Ducks and receive Fowler and a 2027 fourth-round draft pick.

Anaheim will also retain $2.5 million percent of Fowler’s salary. He is in the seventh year of an eight-year, $52 million ($6.5 million average annual value) deal, which puts his cap hit at $4 million for the Blues.

Fowler, 33, is in his 15th NHL season and has played all 991 games for the Ducks. He has 96 goals and 457 points, including 38 power-play goals and 174 power-play points.

In 17 games this season, Fowler has no goals and four assists. He is a left-handed defenseman who has played on Anaheim’s top pair and logged the most ice time on the team at 21:04 per match.

Biakabutuka (6-foot-4, 203 pounds), an undrafted 22-year-old, has played two games with the Blues’ AHL affiliate in Springfield and 76 games in the ECHL over the past two seasons.

Blues also assign defenseman Matthew Kessel to AHL Springfield.

What does this mean for the Blues?

My immediate reaction is that the Blues need to know that Nick Leddy is not coming back from his injury anytime soon. Leddy has played just four games this season and after it looked like he would be back soon, his injury “swelled up” again and he returned home early from the team’s western Canadian road trip. While there is no confirmation that Leddy will be out even longer, it looks like it.

Fowler gives the Blues experience and some top four options. They could put Philip Broberg in no. 1 pair with Colton Parayko, then play Fowler with Justin Faulk and drop Ryan Suter to the third pair. PO Joseph, Scott Perunovich and Kessel have been serviceable, but playing one of them instead of two would be better. – Rutherford

(Photo: Kelvin Kuo / USA Today)