2024-2025 Blues Trade Proposals Thread.

[BlueDream]

Per Strickland on the radio today (he can be a clown sometimes but I’d say he’s still the most accurate local reporter for Blues news) :

- Completely shut down the Parayko talk. Said he’s not available at all.

- Said if a Binnington trade ever happens, it’s a Summer move or in a year from now. Doesn’t see it happening before this year’s deadline.

- Said Faulk’s name is “out there.” No other details.

- Not a whole lot of new info on Schenn, just reiterated that it’s highly unlikely the Leafs will meet the asking price for him. Didn’t touch on any other teams.

Nothing groundbreaking but this is about what I would have predicted. I could see someone getting moved, I just don’t believe the Blues are nearly as ‘open for business’ where everyone except Thomas is on the table, as it feels like some people are acting like. Armstrong might want a shakeup, but I think there’s plenty of guys who are safe.

 

[Reality Czech]

Nailed my thoughts exactly on each player.


Great comps w/the Stastny and Shatty deals, team was in a similar situation, and DA still made the moves. Love it.

Except they were both UFAs, so we would have lost them for nothing after the season. A lot easier to justify trading those guys than players with years left.

 

[ds774622]

Exactly. Like if I was a Wild fan I’d be much more inclined to subscribe to the Atheltic after Mike Russo left the Star Tribune because he’s not only a good writer but he’s keyed into the team and knowledgeable about not just the team he’s covering but also what’s going on leaguewide. It would be similar if I was a Cards fan and Derick Goold left the PD for the Athletic. Even Larry Brooks who some call a rumor monger and a hack is clearly a hockey guy and his knowledge of the ongoings in Ranger land is unmatched. Rutherford seems like a nice enough guy but he just never really had my respect on that level.

As someone who is subjected to Larry Brooks’ content more than I care to see (I read the NY Post sometimes for work), he only has team scoops because he has an “in” with the team like Strickland does in StL. The joke is that Brooks’ inside man is Dolan himself lolol. Most fans I know loathe him.

If you’re bored go dig up the drama between the Rangers and Brooks during the Tortorella years. Torts couldn’t stand him.

 

[StlBigFly]

I think the Sabres are holding everybody up. Their fans have mentioned a few times that large groups of scouts from other teams are present at their functions. I think they have among the most nhl impactful guys who could be acquired - whether it be Tuch, McLeod, Cozens, whatever

I’d guess they’re deliberating a Rossi, Bolduc, Berggren and probably a handful of other returns for McLeod or they’re deliberating Tuch to a contender. Probably a thing where Buffalo isn’t taking to you unless you have a good nhler to offer. Kinda makes me shy away from Tuch: what contender is giving away some good stuff from their active roster? You have to guess that if Tuch is dealt it will be future heavy. I don’t know that they want that. If Buffalo is prioritizing an nhl ready return or controlled player they’ll probably get closer to that shopping McLeod to the bubble teams: us, the Canucks, Utah, Detroit, New Jersey, Anahiem, Columbus, Minny, the Avs, etc. Could probably get half the league to send in offers then all freeze while the decision is made.

I think it’s possible that if McLeod or Tuch, whatever the big deal is, goes, or if Buffalo decides to close shop because everybody is trying to fleece them, the forward part of the deadline can begin.

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

The conversation here made me reflect on how little Tarasenko had left when he was traded. At the time, I thought the Blues were still capable of contending if they had a little bit more. But guys like Vlad and ROR have done nothing later to cause us regret for moving them. Armstrong made tough (unpopular) decisions with some of those moves, that look pretty defensible in hindsight. That window closed faster than I expected, and key core guys were cooked seemingly all of a sudden.

I’m sensing Schenn is approaching that corner too. I do expect him to get traded, even if the return doesn’t overwhelm.

 

[Renard]

I am curious how many practices and how much opportunity Montgomery had to do some real coaching around the 2 week break. Are we seeing the fruit of some adjustments they’d been struggling to install during the busy schedule?

I realize the players got protected time off, but the coaches had some freedom they didn’t have time for normally.

Maybe he worked with the defensemen about getting more involved with the offense. D men scored three goals sustain at Washington and it was Suter's shot that Holloway deflected for a goal.

 

[MortiestOfMortys]

If we end up buying instead of selling, I wonder if Anaheim is ready to move on from Isac Lundestrom. He's not a very impressive player, but he is a natural center. He's on a cheap RFA contract, he's 25, and -- maybe most importantly of all -- Swedish. Who knows, maybe on a slightly less dogshit team he takes off.

Idk, that's the kind of low-cost, low-impact, but stabilizing move I could see us making. Noah Cates from Philly also fits into that category, but he's slightly better, slightly older, slightly more expensive, etc. He's also not a "natural" center, but he's taken over 500 faceoffs this season, so. Other than them there aren't a lot of centers in the NHL who are both in our age range and potentially available.

 

[PeoriaBlues309]

If we end up buying instead of selling, I wonder if Anaheim is ready to move on from Isac Lundestrom. He's not a very impressive player, but he is a natural center. He's on a cheap RFA contract, he's 25, and -- maybe most importantly of all -- Swedish. Who knows, maybe on a slightly less dogshit team he takes off.

Idk, that's the kind of low-cost, low-impact, but stabilizing move I could see us making. Noah Cates from Philly also fits into that category, but he's slightly better, slightly older, slightly more expensive, etc. He's also not a "natural" center, but he's taken over 500 faceoffs this season, so. Other than them there aren't a lot of centers in the NHL who are both in our age range and potentially available.

If we’re looking at C from Anaheim, I still want Zegras. He’d be a MUCH better fit in Monty’s system than he is with Cronin.

2C’s are hard to acquire, and buying low on a young player who’s had legitimate success at an early age(that isn’t on a long term deal) should be what Army is looking to do until Dvorsky is ready for that spot.

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

If we end up buying instead of selling, I wonder if Anaheim is ready to move on from Isac Lundestrom. He's not a very impressive player, but he is a natural center. He's on a cheap RFA contract, he's 25, and -- maybe most importantly of all -- Swedish. Who knows, maybe on a slightly less dogshit team he takes off.

Idk, that's the kind of low-cost, low-impact, but stabilizing move I could see us making. Noah Cates from Philly also fits into that category, but he's slightly better, slightly older, slightly more expensive, etc. He's also not a "natural" center, but he's taken over 500 faceoffs this season, so. Other than them there aren't a lot of centers in the NHL who are both in our age range and potentially available.

Even if the Blues manage to look plausible for the playoffs, I don't think Armstrong would "buy" in a trade other than something really cheap as a token move for depth...or a player that has term that he wants to re-sign. I frankly wouldn't be shocked if he did BOTH (trade a guy like Schenn and acquire a depth player on a rental deal).

 

[Reality Czech]

If we’re looking at C from Anaheim, I still want Zegras. He’d be a MUCH better fit in Monty’s system than he is with Cronin.

2C’s are hard to acquire, and buying low on a young player who’s had legitimate success at an early age(that isn’t on a long term deal) should be what Army is looking to do until Dvorsky is ready for that spot.

Zegras would fit well but he wouldn't come cheap. Who are you offering for him? I feel like it would take at least 2 of Snuggerud, Neighbours, Bolduc, and/or a first.

 

[bleedblue1223]

Zegras looks like a massive bust at this point. I'll take him if he's dirt cheap, but can he even play C on a good team?

 

[BadgersandBlues]

I think we're talking to everyone about everyone, but I don't think we're actually going to make a big trade. If we do make a trade it'll be doing right by someone like Suter to put him on a contender, but nothing huge/groundbreaking.

I think we're laying the groundwork now for potential deals once the season is over. Does anything actually come out of any of this? Who knows. I think we're gauging interest on basically our entire roster to see if anything we might want moving forward shakes free.

 

[ezcreepin]

The report from Strick about what's going on I guess could be news to people who don't know the game which might be like 90% of fans (which is valuable sure), but I think for us, that information seems like old news. There was no way Parayko was getting traded. Faulk seems like the only likely trade bait on the backend with a bit of resurgence and being signed after this year to a moderate cap hit. Don't see any reason why we would trade Binnington when neither AHL goalie has had a game in the NHL - there's no reason to make a move. Schenn I guess could be up in the air, but just based on vibes, it doesn't make sense in my head that Army would lose a 3rd captain in 5 years. Petro was a miscalculation which he should have known, and O'Reilly was a really smart asset management situation he made, but Schenn is playing quite well and has been playing at a 50 point pace still while providing a style of play that is hard to replicate. He's like a much more talented Backes and for this team that's pretty valuable. I can't really see Army trading Schenn for any reason other than like a top 3 pick or BLUE chip prospect that is going to be a star. Whether or not that's the right move, I think the culture and vibes in the locker room are just as, if not more important that stocking up on 1 or 2 more high end prospects.

The biggest problem with JR has nothing to do with his reporting. He has no innate knowledge about the game. You can tell he was a guy who was put on the Blues beat during the onset of his career and just stayed and became a fan but he doesn’t KNOW hockey. You can tell this more obviously when he’s on long form radio. He just regurgitates things he hears in locker rooms or from sources but he’s not remotely interesting or thought provoking. He’s like a rich mans Jim Thomas.

Say what you want about Andy Strickland but he knows hockey. You can tell DeFranks probably grew up around the game or was a fan from early in life. I don’t think JR is a hack or anything like that but I never really respected his opinion so he’s never really been worth getting worked up over.

I do agree that he has knowledge of the game, but he doesn't ever seem to use his knowledge to report on anything valuable to the hardcore fans. And his speculation is just that, it doesn't ever do anything, doesn't ever make sense, and doesn't ever lead to anything to actually happening. For example, dude talked so much about Brady Tkachuk and the Blues. The only connection between him and this team is his dad and there have been NO reports of Brady coming to St Louis or Ottawa wanting to trade him until possibly this year when things weren't going well. And it wasn't even like we were in the conversation, it's always like "Uh oh, Sens aren't doing well and they need to do something to fix this issue. Who can you trade, Tkachuk? Here are teams that would make sense or here are teams that would be interested seriously..." Anyone who knows anything about St Louis and the game could make the connection of any Tkachuk coming here, but is it a credible report or just wishful thinking? If you are going to be a professional in the space, Provide something, ANYTHING that hardcore fans probably don't know. I know that's asking a lot since we here are the minority especially in the Midwest, but like cmon there are people who do it around the league really well.

The conversation here made me reflect on how little Tarasenko had left when he was traded. At the time, I thought the Blues were still capable of contending if they had a little bit more. But guys like Vlad and ROR have done nothing later to cause us regret for moving them. Armstrong made tough (unpopular) decisions with some of those moves, that look pretty defensible in hindsight. That window closed faster than I expected, and key core guys were cooked seemingly all of a sudden.

I’m sensing Schenn is approaching that corner too. I do expect him to get traded, even if the return doesn’t overwhelm.

Armstrong has done fairly well in making the unpopular decision and it looking good down the road. Not signing Backes, trading Elliott, trading Reaves, trading Erik Johnson, not trading Bouw, Acquiring Schenn and removing Lehtera, trading Tarasenko and O'Reilly... I think added up, he's probably a net positive on the moves he makes, and maybe a net negative in the deals he signs. And I think that can be in part due to pro scouting and how they haven't been super great for quite a while. But in general, Army does make calculated trades and I think comes out even or on top most times.

I actually think I disagree about the Blues trading Schenn. I don't know if that improves the team even in the long term unless we get a star blue chip prospect. You'd be trading away a leader in the locker room, a great wing option and serviceable center option, your captain, and a physical presence on the ice when you don't have a ton of that. I'm not sure if it makes sense to the team to trade him away at this point.