St. Louis Blues sign goaltender Colten Ellis to one-year contract extension
The St. Louis Blues have signed goaltender Colten Ellis to a one-year, two-way contract extension, the club announced Tuesday morning.
Ellis, 23, split the 2023-24 season between the AHL’s Springfield Thunderbirds and the ECHL’s Orlando Solar Bears. He took the reins from Vadim Zherenko as the Blues organization’s No. 3 goaltender down the stretch.
In 16 AHL contests with the Thunderbirds last season, Ellis posted a 7-9-0 record to go along with a .924 save percentage. Additionally, the Nova Scotia-born goaltender went 12-5-1 with one shutout and a .923 save percentage in 21 games with the Solar Bears.
Ellis’ new contract with the Blues carries a $775,000 NHL cap hit but will see him paid only $85,000 in the AHL. The 6’1″ goaltender has yet to make his NHL debut through three professional seasons.
The Blues have signed goaltender Colten Ellis to a one-year, two-way contract extension. #stlblues
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The Blues originally selected Ellis in the third round (No. 93 overall) of the 2019 NHL Draft, immediately after they won their first Stanley Cup in franchise history.
In March 2021, near the end of his strong junior career with the QMJHL’s Charlottetown Islanders, Rimouski Océanic, and Cape Breton Screaming Eagles, Ellis signed his three-year, entry-level contract with the Blues. He spent most of his first two professional seasons in the ECHL.
Through 22 career AHL games over parts of two seasons with the Thunderbirds, Ellis has posted an 8-12-3 record with a 3.17 goals-against average and a .913 save percentage. Despite Ellis’ best efforts, the Thunderbirds did not qualify for the 2024 Calder Cup Playoffs.
With Ellis now under contract for the 2024-25 season, the Blues appear to have their goaltending hierarchy set for at least the next year. Coming off a strong season, Jordan Binnington will retain his post as the team’s starting goaltender, with Joel Hofer slotting in as his backup; Ellis and Zherenko will run in tandem in the AHL, while fifth-stringer Will Cranley will likely return to the ECHL.
The Blues finished the 2023-24 regular season with a 43-33-6 record and 92 points, ending up in ninth place in the Western Conference (six points back of the eighth-seeded Vegas Golden Knights).