The St. Louis Blues have signed defenseman Cam Fowler from the Anaheim Ducks to bolster their playoff push.

The Blues traded a 2027 second-round pick and 22-year-old minor league defenseman Jeremie Biakabutuka to Anaheim for Fowler and a 2027 fourth-round pick.

Crucially, the Ducks retain 38.5% of Fowler’s $6.5 million cap number. The 33-year-old defender is signed until the 2025/26 season. Fowler has a limited no-trade clause in which he submits a four-team trade list to the Ducks each offseason.

“After meeting with Cam several times over the last few months, we both realized it might be time for a change. As usual, “Cam handled the process with professionalism and remained loyal to the Ducks,” Anaheim general manager Pat Verbeek said.

Fowler spent his entire 15-year NHL career with the Ducks, who selected him 12th overall in the 2010 draft. With 457 points in 991 games, he is the highest-scoring defenseman in franchise history.

He is also the all-time leader in goals (96), assists (361) and appearances among defensemen. Of all skaters, only center Ryan Getzlaf (1,157) appeared in more games with Anaheim.

Fowler is considered a good puck-moving defenseman with above-average passing skills, but has been a defensive liability for the Ducks over the past few seasons while averaging 24 minutes per night for a rebuilding roster. His minus-66 since 2022-23 was the fourth-worst among all NHL players.

He has four assists in 17 games this season, a minus-seven. He missed time with an upper-body injury.

“This was a difficult trade considering what Cam has meant to this organization,” Verbeek said. “He has been a valuable and respected member of our team for 15 seasons and has represented the Ducks at the highest level. His character and contributions on and off the ice have (and will) continue to have a positive impact on our fans and community.”

Biakabutuka spent some time in the AHL, but spent the majority of his professional career in the ECHL. He was signed as an undrafted free agent in 2023.

This is the second significant move on the blue line for Anaheim, which signed defenseman Jacob Trouba from the New York Rangers last week. With Fowler, the Blues are adding another veteran to their experienced squad.

His addition could signal that defenseman Nick Leddy will be out of the lineup long-term. Leddy hasn’t played since Oct. 15 and recently underwent further testing for a lower-body injury. With salary retention, Fowler’s cap number is $4 million – and Leddy’s contract counts against the cap.

St. Louis general manager Doug Armstrong has aggressively tried to turn the Blues’ season around by firing first-year coach Drew Bannister after 22 games in favor of former Boston Bruins coach Jim Montgomery. to engage. St. Louis has gone 5-2-1 since the coaching change.