Alexandre Texier is an unknown newcomer who could be the next unknown for the St. Louis Blues

MARYLAND HEIGHTS, Mo. — There has been a lot of buzz surrounding the St. Louis Blues’ offseason signings, some of which have generated a lot of interest — and rightly so.

But for those who forgot, the ball started rolling for Doug Armstrong on the second day of the 2024 NHL Draft, June 29, when the Blues general manager began rebuilding the team by acquiring forward Alexandre Texier from the Columbus Blue Jackets and a fourth-round draft pick in 2025. Armstrong immediately signed the restricted free agent to a two-year, $4.2 million contract (average annual value of $2.1 million).

The Blues have made no secret of their desire to be faster, stronger and more physical, adding Texier, Radek Faksa, Mathieu Joseph and Dylan Holloway to the attack and Ryan Suter and Philip Broberg to the blue line.

People are starting to understand more and more who some of these players are, but who is Texier, who is 6’1” and weighs 200 pounds?

“I can play anywhere,” Texier said. “I play PP. Last year I played a lot of PK. My game is based on speed. I think that suits this club.”

Texier, 25, hails from Saint-Martin-d’Hères, France, and has just ended his international career in the race to qualify for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy.

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He’s a versatile skater who can play anywhere in the lineup, deploying him at center or on the wing, which the Blue Jackets have done during the 2017 second-round draft pick’s five-year tenure with the Jackets.

That’s why the Blues take a close look at what they have and what they think is best for them.

“It’s going to take some time,” Blues coach Drew Bannister said. “I don’t know much about him personally. I watched him quite a bit when I was a junior. I’ve seen him a little bit before that. … He gives us speed on the wings and he’s a bigger body. That’s definitely going to help our team, and where he fits in and what role he’ll play on the team will be determined in training camp.”

Texier was relieved and a little surprised by the move. Columbus at the time didn’t feel they could afford to pay Texier; he was happy in Columbus, but he understood the business, and when it became known that he would be moving to St. Louis, he was excited.

“Pretty happy. A little surprised,” Texier said. “I really didn’t know what to expect from my season in terms of the contract. I’m pretty happy to be here, and the guys seem pretty good. Everyone welcomed me really nice. I feel pretty good. I like this city. It’s kind of the same as Columbus. Small, but everything’s close. I really like it.”

Last season was Texier’s first full season, in which he appeared in 78 games and finished with career-highs in goals (12), assists (18) and points (30), averaging 15:11 of ice time per game; in 201 regular-season games, he scored 79 points (34 goals, 45 assists).

“I think I was pretty positive about it (in Columbus),” Texier said. “That’s part of the business. You really don’t know what tomorrow brings. I took my time and my agent called me and said, ‘Yeah, 100 percent, let’s see what’s in store for me.’ I had a pretty good summer, came in prepared and I’m looking forward to playing games now.”

The Blues started Texier on the wing at the start of camp with Zach Dean and Alexei Toropchenko, but on Monday he lined up Brandon Saad and Jakub Stancl at center, a design that sounds familiar, a bit like the one they’re experimenting with another versatile skater, Pavel Buchnevich.

“I think it’s a conversation we could probably have,” Bannister said of Texier playing center. “I don’t want to jump ahead and say it’s something we’re looking at, but it’s certainly an option and something I want to make sure he’s comfortable with if we decide to do it.”

Texier doesn’t care where he plays. He sees a lineup that fits the structure of how he likes to play.

“They’ve got good, talented, young guys, some veterans,” Texier said of the Blues. “You’ve got to earn your spot. It’s the same on every team, even in Columbus after my freshman year, my sophomore year. You’ve got to step up in training camp and earn your spot, play well in the exhibition games, and that’s what I’m going to do, try to be myself as a player.

“I expect a lot from myself. I think this is another big step for me. I’m 25 and they probably expect the same. They expect a lot from me. It’s good when you expect a lot from yourself and I know I have the support of my teammates and my management, and now you just have to prove it on the ice.

“I like that we’re a pretty fast team. We have a mix of everything, young talent, veterans, a lot of experience. I think we’re headed in the right direction. I think we’re fast and I think the new game in the NHL is to play fast with speed, tempo, intensity and I think we have it all. We just have to play games and see and figure it out in the room.”

Texier said he thinks the offense will get more opportunities in St. Louis, but he wants to focus on being consistent off the puck on the defensive end. He gained trust in Columbus as a penalty killer last season and wants to continue that trend.

“I talked to the coaching staff today, they thought he was outstanding on the other side. I didn’t see that,” Bannister said. “… The offensive side is there, and I think he’s right that most of the offensive players need to work on their defense. We’ll see, but I think he’s got the ability to move up and down the lineup. I don’t think we’ll have him in the bottom six. I think he’s a player who can also compete for places in the top six. But I think he’s got the ability to score goals, which we’ve seen at this level, but at the same time, as a team, not just as an individual, we’ve got to become a better defensive team. We’re not just going to ask him to do that; we’re going to ask everyone to do that.”

Texier now has a few teammates who speak the language, Mathieu and PO Joseph, but he doesn’t really know anyone from the past that he’s familiar with. But that will come with time.

“I’ll manage, I’ll talk to the guys and get to know them,” Texier said with a smile. “It should be fine.”

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