MIke Yeo to succeed Ken Hitchcock as St. Louis Blues coach after 2016-17

Mike Yeo will be a head coach again, but not this upcoming season.

The St. Louis Blues announced Monday that Yeo will take over behind the bench after current coach Ken Hitchcock departs. Yeo will serve as an associate coach until Hitchcock steps away after the 2016-17 season.

“For being 42 years old, he’s got a lot of experience. He’s won a Stanley Cup in Pittsburgh, he’s taken an American Hockey League team to the finals and you saw the good job he did in Minnesota in taking that team to the second round,” Blues General Manager Doug Armstrong said on the team’s website. “What excites me is his experience, but with his age, he can really relate to today’s players and it’s an exciting day for our team.”

Yeo's deal runs four years, Armstrong said. No financial terms were released.

Yeo spent much of the past five seasons with the Minnesota Wild, compiling a 173-132-44 record and leading the team to the postseason three times. He was fired in February after the team lost eight consecutive games.