Blues sign Parayko to 5-year, $27.5M deal

The St. Louis Blues signed defenseman Colton Parayko to a five-year deal with an annual average value of $5.5 million, the team announced Thursday.

The $27.5-million contract will keep Parayko with the Blues through the 2021-22 season, buying his first two seasons of unrestricted free agency. The two sides narrowly avoided salary arbitration, where Parayko was reportedly seeking a one-year, $4.85-million deal.

This is how the five-year contract reportedly breaks down:

Selected 86th overall in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, Parayko totaled 68 points in 160 regular-season games through his first two NHL seasons. He added four goals and 12 points in 31 playoff games. His 23:44 average ice time in the 2016-17 postseason ranked third among Blues' skaters, behind defensemen Alex Pietrangelo and Jay Bouwmeester.

Parayko specializes with the man advantage, having scored seven of his 13 career goals with 10 of his 55 assists coming via the power play. His role is expected to expand next season - and for the next five - after defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk was moved at the 2016-17 trade deadline and later signed with the New York Rangers in free agency.

Parayko saw a significant expansion in his defensive usage last season compared to his rookie campaign. As a sophomore, he began 50.4 percent of his shifts in the defensive zone, after starting in his own end just 48.8 percent of the time as a rookie. He owns a positive Corsi For rating of 52.8 percent for his career.

Depth defender Joel Edmundson is now the Blues' only defenseman not signed beyond the upcoming season. Parayko is the team's lone defender signed past the 2019-20 campaign.