Cam Fowler trade addresses Blues’ needs without impeding future

DALLAS — Within a few hours of waking up a duck in Columbus, Ohio, Cam Fowler had said goodbye to the only NHL organization he knew in his career and was Texas-bound to become a Blue when they had needed him, which was immediately if not sooner.

The Blues traded for the veteran defender on Saturday morning to bolster a taxed blueline and the minutes were important, so why wait?

“When something happens and it’s official, I’m part of this team now, and I think the goal was to get me here as soon as I could and be available for the team,” Fowler said shortly before his Blues debut on Saturday night against the stars. “That’s really what my focus was. They wanted me to come in and there was an urgency to get here and be a part of the team and get things going as quickly as I could.”

Talks about a trade intensified between the Blues and the Anaheim Ducks over the last 24 hours, although the Blues’ need for reinforcements became more apparent in the last two weeks.

To acquire Fowler, 33, the Blues sent a 2027 second-round pick and minor-league defenseman Jeremie Biakabutuka to Anaheim. The Blues received a 2027 fourth-rounder from Anaheim with Fowler, and they also took some salary reduction as the Ducks kept about 38% of Fowler’s cap hit. In the seventh year of an eight-year deal, Fowler will count $4 million against the cap. Fowler had a limited no-trade clause that gave him leverage in a trade with the Blues.

Fowler joins two U.S. teammates from the 2014 Olympics, Justin Faulk and Ryan Suter, in the Blues’ defensive pairing, adding another ice-time workhorse to a team leaning on four defensemen during a grueling stretch.

“When you look at our team right now, we have four guys playing a lot of minutes most nights,” general manager Doug Armstrong said at the American Airlines Center in Dallas. “I felt it was the right time to shore up this group, add an experienced player who can help alleviate some of the ice time. I say this with a smile on my face: We play our top four guys 25 minutes and one of them is about to turn 40. I’m not sure how sustainable this was going forward.”

Armstrong said bolstering the defense’s depth became a goal as Nick Leddy’s status darkened during the recent road trip. Leddy has been “day to day for the better part of two months,” Armstrong described. The defender last played two months ago, on October 15, and he returned to St. Louis from Western Canada to undergo an evaluation of a persistent lower body injury.

There is no timetable for his next significant step back toward the lineup.

“Up in the air,” Armstrong said. “I hope he plays next week, but I can’t guarantee it. … The guys are getting worn thin. We taxed a small number of players too much.”

Armstrong said if the Blues make a more significant move this season, it will likely be for a player with years of control who aligns with development initiatives. The length of Fowler’s contract doesn’t complicate or block the talent the Blues think they have on the way. The move was made to prevent the defense from crumbling under the weight of the latest schedule and workload.

“I understand where we are in the standings,” Armstrong said. “I understand where we are in our growth pattern. Every big game we play, every game we’re in advantage (younger players). What we’re trying to do is stay competitive — give these guys the environment where they can grow and not rush our younger players.”

The Blues assigned Matthew Kessel to Springfield to make room for Fowler.

Drafted 12th overall in 2010, Fowler spent 15 seasons and all of his previous 991 NHL games with the Ducks. Last summer, he said he and the team talked about his no-trade protection and seeking a move because of “the situation Anaheim was in, the situation I was in in my career.” The Ducks haven’t been to the playoffs since 2017, and Fowler wanted that chance — knowing it could mean a trade at any time. The call came around 9 Columbus time Saturday.

The blitz to Dallas began soon after.

With a 2 1/2-year-old at home and his wife, Jasmine, expecting, there are a lot of logistics to be worked out on Monday. But first two matches must be played and a new team must meet.

“That’s why I think coming in tonight will help settle my nerves a little bit,” Fowler said. “I feel the best when I’m on the ice.”

Brandon Saad, mired in the longest stretch without a goal since joining the Blues nearly four years ago, was a healthy scratch Saturday and for the first time this season. The winger played 27 straight games since the start of the year on the injured reserve, but he scored in just two of them for a total of four goals. Last week, against San Jose, he went scoreless for the 13th straight game — and his ice time in the third period thinned.

“A little bit more productivity in terms of creating scoring chances, being in more consistent areas where goals are scored between the dots,” Montgomery said when asked what he should see from the forward. “That would be the primary focus.”

During his 13-game funk, Saad has two assists. More than a third of the way through the schedule, he is coming off his lowest-scoring season just one year after scoring 26.

Dylan Holloway jumped up to the second line to start Saturday’s game in Dallas.

Alexandre Texier skated instead of Saad.

Radek Faksa, who suffered a vicious skating cut near his groin that required stitches last week, did not make the trip to Dallas. The Blues initially hoped he would return to the ice against the Stars, his former team, but he continued his recovery in St. Louis and will be reevaluated prior to Sunday’s home game against the Rangers.

A subtle but significant contributor to the Blues’ recent success, especially on the road, has been a complete turnaround in the faceoff circle. In the last six road games, five of them wins, the Blues have won 52.9% of their faceoffs, 54.6% in the five games they won.

For a team that still ranks in the bottom third for faceoff percentage (48.7%), that’s a significant increase. They were 47.8% before Montgomery became coach.

Although there have been some changes, such as Faksa taking more draws, the most important factor is the return of Robert Thomas. Thomas’ 57.0% win rate ranks 19th in the NHL for skaters with more than 100 faceoffs this season.

“It’s kind of like the rest of the game where you have to time your faceoffs and get your timing,” Thomas said. “It’s a tough game to win. It definitely takes time to get back into a rhythm and be consistent instead of just being good one game, bad the next. Possession is big. You’re up front when you lose. It’s a small detail that creates bigger things.”

Staff writer Matthew DeFranks contributed reporting to this article.