Former AHL MVP signs with Blues

The St. Louis Blues, parent club of the AHL’s Peoria Rivermen, announced today that the club has agreed to terms with forward Derek Armstrong on a two-way contract.

Armstrong played in 56 games with the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings last season, recording nine points (five goals, four assists) along with 63 penalty minutes. The 6-0, 197-pound center has played in 471 NHL games for the New York Islanders and Rangers, Ottawa, and Los Angeles, amassing 221 points (72 goals, 149 assists) and 353 penalty minutes.

His last full season in the American Hockey League was in 2000-01 with the Hartford Wolf Pack, when he accounted for 101 points (32g, 69a) in 75 games and was named the league’s MVP. In 318 career AHL games with Worcester, Hartford, and Manchester, Armstrong has totaled 338 points (119g, 219a).

A two-time AHL All-Star (1999, 2000), Armstrong won the Jack A. Butterfield Trophy in 2000 as the most valuable player of the Calder Cup Playoffs, posting 23 points (7g, 16a) in 23 games as the Wolf Pack captured the AHL championship. The next year (2000-01), he earned the Les Cunningham Award as the AHL MVP for the regular season and the John B. Sollenberger Trophy for most points in the regular season.

The Ottawa native was originally drafted by the New York Islanders in the sixth round, 128th overall in the 1992 Entry Draft.