The St. Louis Blues have had a tumultuous season, including a poor start, a coaching change, a resurgence, and a possible selling opportunity at the NHL Trade Deadline. St. Louis was in a rough spot offensively, but the Boston Bruins firing Jim Montgomery opened up the possibility of a reunion with their former assistant coach. Montgomery immediately impacted the team, but they returned to earth over the past month or two. Brayden Schenn is now a possible trade candidate at the deadline. However, a recent winning stretch complicates things for Doug Armstrong and the front office.
The Blues are 6-2-2 over their last ten games, which puts them a point behind the Calgary Flames and Vancouver Canucks. The Flames hold the tiebreak for the second wild card, which likely makes this a three-team race for that playoff spot. The Blues likely accepted their fate as sellers before this winning stretch, but now they could reconsider. The uncertainty surrounding the Canucks and Flames could also throw a wrench into those plans.
St. Louis is already behind the pack when it comes to games played, as both the Canucks and Flames have two games in hand. It’s tough enough to make up ground in such a tight race, but having two fewer games to earn points won’t make it any easier. Armstrong is usually a savvy general manager, and you can be sure he has all those factors under heavy consideration.
It might be hard to believe after seeing his performance in the 4 Nations Face-Off Final, but Jordan Binnington’s name is also circulating in rumors. The Blues’ issue is that Binnington hasn’t been the better goaltender this season, with backup Joel Hofer recording better numbers through most of the season before a slight hiccup recently.
Blues teardown would be a dream for their future
The trade deadline will be a seller’s market, and the Blues should strike while the iron’s hot. We saw it on Wednesday with the haul the Seattle Kraken received for Yanni Gourde and Oliver Bjorkstrand. It’s hard to imagine the kind of return the Blues would get for Schenn or Binnington, which has to be in the front of Armstrong’s mind.
The Blues have already said they aren’t interested in a fire sale at the trade deadline, but it has to be considered at some point. St. Louis received the new coach bump when Montgomery signed, but it has recently been more of a flatline performance. The team must look past the last 10 games and see the bigger picture: they must get younger and more skilled.
Darren Dreger appeared on TSN’s radio show Overdrive on Wednesday and dropped a massive comment about the Toronto Maple Leafs’ mindset entering the trade deadline. They seem desperate for a Stanley Cup run this season and are willing to overpay to bolster their roster. If Dreger’s speculation is true, Armstrong should run to NHL’s central registry to execute this deal.
“Would Toronto consider trading all three of their young prospects you’re talking about, Easton Cowan, Fraser Minten, and Ben Danford, for Brayden Schenn?” Dreger wondered. “Is that even enough? And the belief out there is that as long as Armstrong is willing to listen, that means he’s absolutely fishing and shopping for an unbelievable return.”
If the Blues can land the Leafs’ last three first-round picks for their 33-year-old captain, they must do it.
Letting trade deadline pass without selling assets could be a nightmare
We rarely enter a trade deadline with three teams battling for a wild card spot and all considering selling. However, that’s what we have this year in the Western Conference. The Blues, Flames, and Canucks could all sell some assets, which would leave the door open for the Utah Hockey Club or Anaheim Ducks to miraculously sneak in the backdoor.
Another interesting part is that the Blues could be the best of the remaining teams even if they trade Schenn and/or Binnington. Schenn is the team’s fifth-leading scorer and the only minus player in that group of forwards. His leadership would be a loss, but some players, namely Zack Bolduc, are ready to step up in his absence.
Hofer is also ready to take Binnington’s spot as the starter on this team and can lead the team to the playoffs. Is there a chance that the Blues can have the best of both worlds and sell their best assets while still making the playoffs?
The nightmare scenario for the Blues would be if they stay the course and all the teams around them sell. St. Louis would likely walk into that final wild card spot by default and then get taken out quickly by the Winnipeg Jets in the first round. Armstrong will wonder why he didn’t follow Calgary and Vancouver’s lead and sell if that happens.
The Blues should sell their aging assets, reload with youth, and hope to sneak into that final wild card spot, regardless.
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