The St. Louis Blues appear to be wasting little time getting to work on re-signing their key free agents,  inking center Andy McDonald to a four-year, $18.8 million contract extension.

McDonald, 31, was eligible for unrestricted free agent status this summer. He has been sidelined most of this season with a fractured left leg, will be earning $4.7 million per season beginning in the 2009-10 season.

Since joining the Blues mid-way through the 2007-08 season McDonald proved a valuable addition, chalking up 36 points in 49 games last season and 16 points in 18 games this season prior to being sidelined.

His first two seasons following the lockout with the Anaheim Ducks he had strong numbers, with 85 points in 2005-06 and 78 points in 2006-07 centering Teemu Selanne's line but struggled last season with Selanne in Finland contemplating retirement which resulted in his deal to St. Louis midway through the campaign for Doug Weight.

It was a move which benefited the Blues as McDonald regained his scoring touch. Still, it'll be interesting to see how well he performs under this new contract and the heightened expectations that'll come with it.

This signing pushes the Blues payroll for next season to nearly $40 million but most of their key playiers are under contract, with the most notable free agents being Keith Tkachuk (UFA), Dan Hinote (UFA), Manny Legace (UFA), Mike Weaver (UFA), Jay McClement (RFA), Jeff Woywitka (RFA), Brandon Crombeen (RFA) and Steve Wagner (RFA).