Alex Pietrangelo has agreed to a seven-year, $45.5 million contract with the St. Louis Blues.

"What I said to him, 'This isn't a seven-year deal, this is just another stepping stone,'" GM Doug Armstrong said. "I think he's excited to be here, I know we're excited to have him, get him in here and turn him over to the coach."

Pietrangelo led the team's defensemen with 24 points -- five goals and 19 assists -- and was among the league leaders with an average of 25 minutes per game. 

Pietrangelo had been holding out.

"We kept him up to date until we couldn't speak to him anymore," Ken Hitchcock said. "He knows the last couple weeks what's going on ... players have kept him up to date."