Alex Pietrangelo has been a part of the St. Louis Blues organization for nearly 12 years now. The Blues took him fourth overall in the 2008 NHL Draft back on June 20, 2008 after Pietrangelo had an outstanding junior career with the Niagara IceDogs of the OHL. Pietrangelo recorded 134 points in 155 games while in Niagara and was the third defenseman taken off the board in the 2008 Draft behind Drew Doughty who went second overall to the Los Angeles Kings and Zach Bogosian who went third to the Atlanta Thrashers. Pietrangelo would play eight games for the Blues during the 2008-09 season and one game for the Peoria Rivermen before being sent back to his junior team and would then would teeter between the NHL and OHL once again during the following season, before becoming an every nighter in the lineup for the Blues in the 2009-10 season where Pietrangelo would begin an outstanding career with the organization.
During that 2009-10 season, Pietrangelo burst onto the scene for the Blues as he led all defensemen on the team in points with 43 (11 G, 32 A) while playing in 79 games as a 21-year-old. Pietrangelo would have been a solid candidate for the Calder Trophy (rookie of the year), however he was not deemed as a rookie by the NHL as he appeared in games for the Blues in three total different seasons, despite having only played in 17 total NHL games prior to the 2010-11 season. Pietrangelo continued to become a solid defenseman, totaling 75 points (17 G, 58 A) in 128 games over the next two seasons before being rewarded with a seven-year, $45 million contract extension in September of 2013.
Over the years, Pietrangelo had served as one of the Blues’ assistant captains as he was a leader in the locker room and one of the most talented players in the room. He helped the Blues reach the Western Conference Final in the spring of 2016, before being ousted while two wins away from reaching the Stanley Cup Final. Pietrangelo finished one point behind Kevin Shattenkirk for most points by a Blues defenseman in that playoff run with 10. That following summer, David Backes, who spent the previous five seasons as the captain of the St. Louis Blues, decided to sign with the Boston Bruins. The Blues now needed to assign captainship, where Pietrangelo was eventually decided upon and was named team captain on August 24, 2016.
During the 2017-18 season, Pietrangelo recorded a career high in points with 54 (15 G, 39 A) and was selected to his first career All-Star Game. Despite his incredible year, the Blues missed the playoffs for the first time in six seasons. The Blues then retooled the following offseason, adding the likes of Ryan O’Reilly, David Perron, Tyler Bozak, and Pat Maroon to the team. Despite having one of the best lineups on paper, the Blues struggled mightily. They had fired their coach Mike Yeo back in November even found themselves last place in the NHL in terms of points in early January of 2019. The Blues almost neared a point where they were going to enter sell mode and potentially deal their superstars for draft picks and top prospects. Pietrangelo had himself and the likes of Vladimir Tarasenko rumored in trade talks and had many teams inquire on the price. However, Blues GM Doug Armstrong was reluctant to deal either player and decided to let things play out.
Things would thankfully work themselves out, as the Blues found team chemistry under Craig Berube and surged, including winning a franchise record 11 consecutive wins. They had entered a playoff spot and later clinched with five games remaining in the season. The Blues were matched up with the Winnipeg Jets in the opening round, where Pietrangelo would record six assists in six games as the Blues downed the Jets. Pietrangelo would continue to help facilitate offense for the Blues in the second round against the Dallas Stars, totaling five points in seven games which included two goals and an assist on Vince Dunn’s game opening goal in their Game 7 victory. A familiar foe waited for the Blues in the conference final, as they were pitted up against the San Jose Sharks, the same team that defeated them in the WCF three years prior. Pietrangelo would actually have his lowest series point total against the Sharks, recording just two total assists yet had an assist on Brayden Schenn’s goal in Game 6 as the Blues beat the Sharks 5-1 to move on to their first Stanley Cup Final berth in nearly 50 years.
While playing solid defense, Pietrangelo’s offensive numbers still were not there during the start of the Stanley Cup Final, as he did not record any points in the first three games as the Blues found themselves down 2-1 in the series to the Boston Bruins. However in Game 4, Pietrangelo was monumental for the Blues as he would record the primary assist on Tarasenko’s first period goal and then recorded the primary assist on Ryan O’Reilly’s game winning goal as the Blues won 4-2 and evened the series up at two. Then in Game 5, Pietrangelo had the secondary assist on O’Reilly’s game opening goal as the Blues would go on to win 2-1 and were one win away from winning their first ever Stanley Cup. But the Blues could not get the job done at home in Game 6, with Pietrangelo recording an assist on the Blues lone goal of the game as they fell 5-1 to force the ever-valuable Game 7.
It would be on June 12, 2019 in that Game 7 that Pietrangelo would insert himself into both Blues history and hockey history forever. Despite being outplayed for almost the entire duration of the first period, the Blues were bailed out by the incredible play of Jordan Binnington and the game was still deadlocked at zero as the clock reached the four-minute mark. Then with just over three minutes to play while in the offensive zone, Pietrangelo passed the puck over to Jay Bouwmeester who then shot the puck and it would be redirected by Ryan O’Reilly and into the net to put the Blues on the board. Then as time ticked down into the final 10 seconds, Pietrangelo joined the rush in the offensive zone and received a feed from Jaden Schwartz and buried it past Tuukka Rask to put the Blues up 2-0 with 7.9 seconds remaining in the first. The Blues added two goals in the third to go up 4-0 before surrendering one goal in the final two and a half minutes of the game. The clock reached zero and the Blues would win 4-1 with Pietrangelo’s late first period goal standing as the Stanley Cup game winning goal. After several minutes of celebration, Pietrangelo was called up by NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman to come receive the Stanley Cup. After a brief pose for a photo, Pietrangelo lifted the cup up and became the first captain (and first player ever) to hoist the Stanley Cup for the Blues.
After a summer of celebration, the Stanley Cup banner was raised, the dust settled, and it was time for hockey again. The 2019-20 season was well underway and Pietrangelo was entering the last year of the contract he signed in 2013. But like a fine wine, Pietrangelo was only getting better with age as in his age 30 season, he was named an All-Star for the second time in three seasons. Unfortunately, the current season is paused due to the coronavirus pandemic, as the Blues were able to complete 71/82 games before the league suspended play. Pietrangelo had already netted a career high of 16 goals this season, and was on his way to a career high in points as he sits at 52, meaning he needed just three points in the final 11 games of the season to reach a career high of 55. Unfortunately for Pietrangelo (and the rest of the NHL), he likely will not get a chance to reach that career high as the NHL will likely go straight to the playoffs if and when they are able to resume play.
As of today, Pietrangelo has achieved the following ranks within the St. Louis Blues organization: 5th in games played, 3rd in assists, 9th in points (2nd in points by a d-man), 5th in plus/minus, 5th in playoff games played, t-8th playoff points. and 5th in playoff assists. Pietrangelo of course is also the 22nd captain in franchise history and is the only captain to lead the team to a Stanley Cup victory as he also had the Stanley Cup game winning goal. It is not a matter of if, but when Pietrangelo’s #27 will be hung up into the rafters at Enterprise Center because it is a 100% guarantee that it is happening. Pietrangelo’s contract will be up after this season and he will be due another pay upgrade. Even in the strange instance that he signs elsewhere this upcoming offseason, his number will be retired regardless due to his accomplishments over the last decade here in St. Louis.
However, the difference between Pietrangelo staying in St. Louis or leaving could mean a statue. If Pietrangelo signs with the Blues, it will likely be a seven or eight year deal that would solidify his status as a career Blue. If he plays out the final years of his career in St. Louis, he will likely become the franchise’s all-time leader in games played, as he is only 170 games away from passing Bernie Federko on the top of that list. Pietrangelo is also on the cusp of passing Al MacInnis for most points in franchise history by a defenseman, as he only needs three points to do so. By staying in St. Louis for the remainder of his career, Pietrangelo would become the most decorate defenseman the franchise has seen in its 50+ year history as he will continue to climb on the franchise all-time lists and any other potential accolades he could achieve in the next several years. Should he choose to stay, in a decade or so a statue will be resurrected of him out next to Bernie, Brett, and Al facing out toward Clark Avenue without a question. Here is to hoping that both sides can come to an agreement soon to keep Pietrangelo in St. Louis for the rest of his career.
