The St. Louis Blues turned the page on an era Tuesday, officially elevating former St. Louis Blues forward Alexander Steen to general manager and shifting Doug Armstrong into a role focused solely on the franchise’s broader hockey operations strategy. Steen becomes the 12th general manager in franchise history, closing out a transition that had been set in motion since June 2024.
Steen, 42, spent the last two seasons as special assistant to the general manager, a position the organization designed specifically to prepare him for this handoff. During that stretch, he was closely involved in the day-to-day decision-making across the hockey operations department to help acclimate a former player to the business side of the game he spent parts of two decades playing.
That playing career is well known and beloved in St. Louis. The Winnipeg, Manitoba native, Steen appeared in 1,018 regular-season games, recording 622 points on 245 goals and 377 assists. Twelve of those seasons came in a Blues sweater, and Steen was on the ice for all 26 playoff games during the Blues’ run to their first Stanley Cup in franchise history in 2019. That being said, it should be fact that will carry symbolic weight for a fan base watching one of its own step into the franchise’s most important front-office chair.
Blues Buy Out Jonathan Drouin, Re-Sign Jonatan Berggren
The Blues also made two roster moves official Tuesday, addressing both ends of the transaction ledger on the same day Steen took over the front office.
St. Louis bought out forward Jonathan Drouin. In a move that fans typically do not see coming from the Blues, the decision will will carry a $1.33 million cap hit across both the 2026-27 and 2027-28 seasons, rather than paying the forward $4 million this coming season. Drouin was acquired by the Blues earlier this year and saw limited time in St. Louis before the buyout decision was reached, with his role in the lineup never fully settled during his brief stint with the club.
On the other side of the ledger, the Blues brought back forward Jonatan Berggren on a one-year, $2 million contract, only hours after initially electing not to tender him a qualifying offer.
Jonatan Berggren's first goal as a Blue made us all like "OMG!" #stlblues pic.twitter.com/Cuzr2XUtUt
— St. Louis Blues (@StLouisBlues) December 19, 2025
The Blues remained open to bringing Berggren back to St. Louis and valued his depth-scoring potential enough to negotiate a fresh deal ahead of the July 1 free agency. While the depth on the wing is getting more and more crowded, Berggren likely slots into St. Louis’s middle-six mix heading into next season. It will be up to him to prove his worth beyond this season with multiple prospects pushing for his and other winger's spots.