3 players the St. Louis Blues should trade this offseason
If the St. Louis Blues want to keep Alex Pietrangelo, they’ll have to make some moves.
The St. Louis Blues won the Stanley Cup in 2019. A year later, they’ve been eliminated from the Stanley Cup Playoffs by the Vancouver Canucks. This offseason, the Blues are going to have to make some very difficult decisions.
A stagnant salary cap certainly doesn’t help the Blues, who were likely counting on an increase to help them keep most of their roster together and bring back team captain Alex Pietrangelo, who’s an unrestricted free agent. If the Blues want to keep their captain, they’re going to have to clear some salary.
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According to CapFriendly, the team has just under $79.5 million committed to 21 players next season. Unless Pietrangelo is feeling overwhelmingly generous, it’s going to take way more than $2 million a year to re-sign him.
Pietrangelo is the heart and soul of the Blues, so expect them to do whatever it takes to bring him back. Here are three players they should trade if they’re interested in re-signing their captain, who will likely command at least $8 million a year.
3. JakeAllen
Trading Jake Allen would clear $4.35 million of cap space if they don’t retain any salary. He’ll be an unrestricted free agent after next season, so the Blues should at least consider trading him if they believe in Jordan Binnington.
That said, after this postseason and the regular season, maybe trading Allen isn’t such a good idea. Allen posted better numbers last season than Binnington and he was certainly the better of the two goalies during the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
But the Blues desperately need to clear some cap space if they want to re-sign Pietrangelo. Allen might be the easiest guy to move. And if they trade him without retaining any salary, it would leave them with about $7.4 million of cap space. Not enough to re-sign Pietrangelo and RFA Vince Dunn, but it at least gives them a bit of breathing room.
2. Oskar Sundqvist
Regardless of who the St. Louis Blues move, unless they pull off a shockingly huge trade, they’ll have to trade more than one player. Whether it’s Allen or someone else making up the brunt of the cap savings, I think Oskar Sundqvist will be a part of it.
Last summer, Sundqvist signed a four-year deal worth $2.75 million annually. That’s a bit pricey for a bottom-six forward. Sundqvist is a pretty solid third or fourth-line forward, but the Blues simply can’t justify paying him nearly $3 million if they want to keep Pietrangelo.
The Blues have various forwards who could step in and replace Sundqvist. They likely want to get younger and find spots in the lineup for players like Jordan Kyrou and Klim Kostin anyway. In order to do that, the Blues are going to have to move a forward or two. Sundqvist makes the most sense because he’s making a bit too much per year and he’s expendable.
Because Sundqvist’s cap hit isn’t too bad, I think he’d have a variety of suitors. Sundqvist took a step back last year as far as production, but he’s one year removed from having 31 points and playing a huge role during the Blues Stanley Cup run.
This is what the Blues have to consider. Do they want to keep Pietrangelo if it means getting rid of players like Sundqvist? Or would it not be worth it?
1. Tyler Bozak
The most likely candidate to be traded to create cap space for the St. Louis Blues is Tyler Bozak. He has a modified no-trade clause that allows him to submit a 10-team no-trade list. But with his $5 million cap hit, Bozak’s likely heading out if the Blues want to re-sign Alex Pietrangelo.
Robert Thomas can slot right in as the Blues third-line center to replace Bozak. If the Blues are concerned about Thomas as a center, they could always put Alexander Steen on that line to give them another option for face-offs.
However, trading Bozak could prove to be difficult for the Blues. It’s undeniable his point totals have been declining over the past few seasons.
- 2016-17: 55 points
- 2017-18: 43 points
- 2018-19: 38 points
- 2019-20: 29 points (in 67 games)
The Blues have to find a way to move out some salary this summer if they want to keep their captain. And guess what? Bozak and Allen are probably their two best options.
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Sure, you could trade David Perron, but he’s still a very productive player. Steen has a full no-trade clause and probably doesn’t want to go anywhere. Obviously, Vladimir Tarasenko and Ryan O’Reilly aren’t going anywhere. That leaves Bozak.