Blues 2025-2026 Trade Proposal Thread

[Blues7]

MSN

 

[Snubbed4Vezina]

MSN

Crazy what qualifies as news these days. I miss journalism.

 

[MyBackesSweaty]

Including the 15th overall pick in a deal for EP is an easy choice. He’s only 27. He’s easily worth more as a 2C for the next 5 years than whoever the 15th pick is.

He’s actually who I hope the Blues trade for.

I feel the same. I hope we're in on him. We have the space, id feel much better with him on the 2nd line than Dvo at this moment in time.

 

[Memento]

Including the 15th overall pick in a deal for EP is an easy choice. He’s only 27. He’s easily worth more as a 2C for the next 5 years than whoever the 15th pick is.

He’s actually who I hope the Blues trade for.

I hope Pettersson is not who the Blues trade for, and I sure as shit wouldn't give them #15 overall in this class for him.

I do not like his contract. It's far too long and far too much for what he's produced over the past few years. He has not been even close to elite, which is what his contract pays him like.

I also do not like his character that he has shown with the Canucks. He's responsible for a lot of that locker room turmoil, and I don't want it brought here. This is not a Ryan O'Reilly situation; Pettersson caused a lot of the dysfunction in that locker room, ever since J.T. Miller.

His contract alone is something I can't stomach trading for. The fact that he's a cancer as well? Hell to the no.

 

[Xerloris]

I also do not like his character that he has shown with the Canucks. He's responsible for a lot of that locker room turmoil, and I don't want it brought here. This is not a Ryan O'Reilly situation; Pettersson caused a lot of the dysfunction in that locker room, ever since J.T. Miller.

How do you know?

 

[Memento]

How do you know?

Proof Positive

More Proof Positive

Even More Proof Positive.

Pettersson's work ethic caused a rift between him and Quinn Hughes. I feel I don't need to mention the whole J.T. Miller thing again.

Pettersson is in the midst of all of it. Where there's this much smoke, there's likely a massive bonfire.

No, I don't want to trade for that smoke.

 

[Xerloris]

Proof Positive

More Proof Positive

Even More Proof Positive.

Pettersson's work ethic caused a rift between him and Quinn Hughes. I feel I don't need to mention the whole J.T. Miller thing again.

Pettersson is in the midst of all of it. Where there's this much smoke, there's likely a massive bonfire.

No, I don't want to trade for that smoke.

Fair enough, I hardly pay attention to other teams so this is all news to me. Thanks.

 

[Falco Lombardi]

I’m more than willing to trade the 15th pick in this class for immediate help but I can’t bring myself to be in on Pettersson

 

[MortiestOfMortys]

Speaking purely for myself, when you expect to make the playoffs, you’re not rebuilding. I think that’s where we are, a bubble playoff team who didn’t make it last year because unusually bad goaltending to start the year.

Doesn’t mean we’re a contender and just totally abandon the path. I’d still entertain a Kyrou trade depending on return and I’d love to move Buchnevich if that was possible.

I don’t think we’re a team that though that’s best use of 3 first round picks is to make 3 first round picks. There’s plenty of depth quality in our prospect pool. There’s decent forward depth on this main roster.

What’s missing is the higher end pieces of a prospect pool and a roster and as fun as it is to dream about landing a Stenberg through the draft this year or a Landon DuPont next, this Blues roster is too good now and will be too good for the forseeable future to do that. That I think is wishful thinking.

You cannot draft your way out of the mushy middle (unless you hit on a Kaprizov in round 5 but that’s not a realistic expectation). The best course to leave that is aggressive behavior, the type that you can afford when you have 3 first round picks.

I get your point, I just don't expect us to make the playoffs next year. And even if we do, it's my position that we shouldn't read too far into that like we did in in 2024-25.

I really struggle to see many scenarios where we aren't robbing Peter to pay Paul in an attempt to make this team better "right now." We should be in the position where we're trading vet contracts for futures, but our remaining bad vet contracts (Fowler, Buch) are probably immovable. So we have to deal from players who still have value to this team, like Parayko, Kyrou, and Binner. That may be the right call in the long-term, but I don't see many paths to it making us better right away. Which is why I don't think immediate improvement should be the goal.

It's gonna take a couple of seasons to everything to take shape. The last window is firmly, irreparably closed, and we should be aggressive in trying to make the next window as good as possible. Until then, it doesn't make much sense to me to get aggressive about flipping picks and prospects for "right now" players. We already tried to bridge the two windows with vet additions, and it hasn't worked. The only player still around from that phase of the rebuild is Zach Dean (assuming Skinner is gone). It's just not a good strategy. Our draft picks from then are still around though. Lesson to be learned there.

 

[Snubbed4Vezina]

It's become very clear to me as an old-ish, more curmudgeonly hockey fan that there often exists a clear split between players: ones that have the drive in them and rise to the moment, and others who are passengers and wait for others to make the plays. I'm noticing more and more of a distinction in certain players these days.

I still have question if we have a few too many of the latter, but with the way the team has drafted over the last few years, I can see that culture changing. These new players, while talented, have that snarl you look for when building a winning team: Jiricek, Carbonneau, Stenberg, Snuggerud, even Dvorsky has that "hate to lose" part of his personality visible on the ice.

I don't see Elias Pettersson as a player that helps us in a Game 6 or Game 7 when the chips are down. At a pivotal position like that at 2C that's important. Seems more like a player to fade in the moment when things get difficult since he got paid.

 

[Fez Whatley]

It's become very clear to me as an old-ish, more curmudgeonly hockey fan that there often exists a clear split between players: ones that have the drive in them and rise to the moment, and others who are passengers and wait for others to make the plays. I'm noticing more and more of a distinction in certain players these days.

I still have question if we have a few too many of the latter, but with the way the team has drafted over the last few years, I can see that culture changing. These new players, while talented, have that snarl you look for when building a winning team: Jiricek, Carbonneau, Stenberg, Snuggerud, even Dvorsky has that "hate to lose" part of his personality visible on the ice.

I don't see Elias Pettersson as a player that helps us in a Game 6 or Game 7 when the chips are down. At a pivotal position like that at 2C that's important. Seems more like a player to fade in the moment when things get difficult since he got paid.

Ep, pld, or kyrou with barbashevs attitude / toughness would be unstoppable

 

[Xanadude]

It's become very clear to me as an old-ish, more curmudgeonly hockey fan that there often exists a clear split between players: ones that have the drive in them and rise to the moment, and others who are passengers and wait for others to make the plays. I'm noticing more and more of a distinction in certain players these days.

I still have question if we have a few too many of the latter, but with the way the team has drafted over the last few years, I can see that culture changing. These new players, while talented, have that snarl you look for when building a winning team: Jiricek, Carbonneau, Stenberg, Snuggerud, even Dvorsky has that "hate to lose" part of his personality visible on the ice.

I don't see Elias Pettersson as a player that helps us in a Game 6 or Game 7 when the chips are down. At a pivotal position like that at 2C that's important. Seems more like a player to fade in the moment when things get difficult since he got paid.

I know there is a ton of smoke about EP40 being a locker room issue and I totally understand if that's enough to scare most people off of him. Totally get it. I just have to wonder how much of his negative aura is a product of a media circus in Vancouver and a toxic locker room in general, with EP being the biggest faller in terms of his production.

When it comes to playstyle, there's a fire and drive thing but there's also the fact that not everyone plays physical/pissed and that's A-OK. Thomas doesn't and shouldn't fly around dealing out massive hits in the O zone. Frankly, Holloway should probably cool it a little himself for his own long-term health! Thomas also screams to the rafters after every scoring chance he misses. EP40 has an aloof aspect that is hard to read which I can see being a concern too.

...but still, the more I think of it a big swing with spare parts for EP40 would be my new plan A before the draft, especially now that I feel Larkin will bone us out of McTavish, my ideal target.

Let's say Elias gets back to 75% of where he was three years ago, writing 23 off as a career year and the last two of a collapsing team, poor linemates, bad coaching, off-ice drama. We'd be looking at about 80 points, strong defense down the middle, forces better matchups for the Thomas line, acquired for a fraction of the Hughesian cost he would have commanded in 2023. At that price and for that production homeboy doesn't need snarl IMO.

If we go after EP40, I would have to trust that everyone in our organization, from Steen on down, is 100% convinced his problems on and off the ice can be explained and that we have a plan for him to come in and be who he's paid to be.

I'd offer something like Suter + Drouin (if the NTC allows) + 27OA + another pick (conditional on production maybe) for no retention EP40. Keeps us well under the cap, lets Dvorsky get easier minutes, creates better matchups for Thomas, and if Petterson stays an overpaid defensively solid 50-60 point center, we slide him to 3C and run Dvorsky as an offensive-oriented 2C.

Vancouver would get a first (they need) and two players the could give big minutes to and then sell at the deadline if they've got enough counting stats to make a contender bite at 50% retained. A final pick could be a conditional one that either rewards Vancouver for their foolish decision to let a franchise player go or a nothing burger.

 

[LogosBlue]

I'd offer something like Suter + Drouin (if the NTC allows) + 27OA + another pick (conditional on production maybe) for no retention EP40. Keeps us well under the cap, lets Dvorsky get easier minutes, creates better matchups for Thomas, and if Petterson stays an overpaid defensively solid 50-60 point center, we slide him to 3C and run Dvorsky as an offensive-oriented 2C.

For starters, I wouldn't touch EP with someone else's 10ft pole. That being said, if there is no retention on his salary, I'm not giving up any first round anything. Suter and Drouin...ok.. a second or third ok. You want good assets back, they better retain on that albatross of a contract.

 

[Louie the Blue]

I know there is a ton of smoke about EP40 being a locker room issue and I totally understand if that's enough to scare most people off of him. Totally get it. I just have to wonder how much of his negative aura is a product of a media circus in Vancouver and a toxic locker room in general, with EP being the biggest faller in terms of his production.

When it comes to playstyle, there's a fire and drive thing but there's also the fact that not everyone plays physical/pissed and that's A-OK. Thomas doesn't and shouldn't fly around dealing out massive hits in the O zone. Frankly, Holloway should probably cool it a little himself for his own long-term health! Thomas also screams to the rafters after every scoring chance he misses. EP40 has an aloof aspect that is hard to read which I can see being a concern too.

...but still, the more I think of it a big swing with spare parts for EP40 would be my new plan A before the draft, especially now that I feel Larkin will bone us out of McTavish, my ideal target.

Let's say Elias gets back to 75% of where he was three years ago, writing 23 off as a career year and the last two of a collapsing team, poor linemates, bad coaching, off-ice drama. We'd be looking at about 80 points, strong defense down the middle, forces better matchups for the Thomas line, acquired for a fraction of the Hughesian cost he would have commanded in 2023. At that price and for that production homeboy doesn't need snarl IMO.

If we go after EP40, I would have to trust that everyone in our organization, from Steen on down, is 100% convinced his problems on and off the ice can be explained and that we have a plan for him to come in and be who he's paid to be.

I'd offer something like Suter + Drouin (if the NTC allows) + 27OA + another pick (conditional on production maybe) for no retention EP40. Keeps us well under the cap, lets Dvorsky get easier minutes, creates better matchups for Thomas, and if Petterson stays an overpaid defensively solid 50-60 point center, we slide him to 3C and run Dvorsky as an offensive-oriented 2C.

Vancouver would get a first (they need) and two players the could give big minutes to and then sell at the deadline if they've got enough counting stats to make a contender bite at 50% retained. A final pick could be a conditional one that either rewards Vancouver for their foolish decision to let a franchise player go or a nothing burger.

If the purpose of competing/contending is to acquire EP, wouldn’t trading Suter be counter intuitive?

I want Dvorsky to succeed as much as anyone else, but trading Suter eliminates competition and also gets rid of a very competent middle 6 forward at a very reasonable AAV.

 

[Frenzy31]

Proof Positive

More Proof Positive

Even More Proof Positive.

Pettersson's work ethic caused a rift between him and Quinn Hughes. I feel I don't need to mention the whole J.T. Miller thing again.

Pettersson is in the midst of all of it. Where there's this much smoke, there's likely a massive bonfire.

No, I don't want to trade for that smoke.

Would Steen be able to mentor and change that? Or is he another player that was paid way too much too soon.

 

[BleedBlue14]

It's really hard not to be curious about the what if's a change of scenery looks like for Pettersson. He has legitimate star upside.

It's highly doubtful that he's actually a cancer of any sort to a room. But it's highly likely he's the type of guy who's all NHL skilled but isn't really a professional right now. It's also possible that he just doesn't have that personality/drive in him. I'd be really curious to see what a season of Pettersson/Kyrou/Neighbors or Buch looks like, but man there's a real risk behind doing that of neither Pettersson or Kyrou really having any dog in them.