The St. Louis Blues have signed left wing James Neal to a one-year contract, worth $750,000. Neal had been in training camp with the Blues on a professional tryout. In the preseason, Neal led the Blues with 4 goals. Neal, 34, played 29 games with 5 goals, 5 assists, 10 points, and a -2 in 2020-2021 with the Edmonton Oilers. The season was Neal's worst season of his career. Neal had his contract bought out by the Oilers on July 27, 2021.
Neal had his best season in 2011-2012, with the Pittsburgh Penguins. That season, Neal played 80 games with 40 goals, 41 assists, 81 points, and a plus 6. The goals, assists, and points were all career highs for Neal.
Overall, Neal has played 13 seasons in the NHL. Neal has played 850 games with 294 goals, 261 assists, 555 points, and a plus 8. In the playoffs, Neal has played 110 games with 33 goals, 25 assists, 58 points, and a -13.
Neal will be looking to have a rebound season. He impressed the Blues well enough to earn a contract. With the Blues, Neal doesn't always need to be the main player. He just needs to go to the net, like he's been doing in the preseason and helping the Blues get scoring chances. The Blues head coach, Craig Berube even liked what he saw in Neal during the preseason. It will be interesting to see if Neal brings that to the regular season.
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