St. Louis Blues Issue Three Qualifying Offers
The St. Louis Blues have extended qualifying offers to three of their six pending restricted free agents, retaining the negotiating rights to forwards Hugh McGing and Alexey Toropchenko, as well as defenseman Tyler Tucker.
Notably, forward Logan Brown and defenseman Dmitri Samorukov were not issued qualifying offers and will become unrestricted free agents on July 1 if they’re not qualified within three days. AHL defenseman Brady Lyle was also left unqualified.
A 2018 fifth-round pick, McGing made his NHL debut two months ago and is making strides in the minors. The 24-year-old picked up a career-high 17 goals, 22 assists, and 39 points in 71 games with the AHL’s Springfield Thunderbirds, where he’ll likely return next season.
Toropchenko, also 24, became a full-time NHLer this season, a role he’s expected to reprise in 2023-24. Selected a year before McGing in the draft, Toropchenko recorded 19 points in 69 games with the Blues and is developing into a capable bottom-six piece. If he signs his qualifying offer, he’ll be retained next season on a two-way deal worth $787.5K in the NHL, although he’ll likely negotiate (and receive) a higher-paying one-way deal.
Tucker, the 200th overall selection in 2018, is an outside candidate to crack the Blues’ lineup out of camp next season after some strong defensive showings in the minors. He got 26 games in the NHL lineup with St. Louis last year, too, recording four points and a -9 rating. The hard-nosed defender posted 21 points in 41 games with Springfield and will also earn $787.5K in the NHL on a two-way deal if he accepts his qualifying offer.
As part of this, the Blues are parting ways with a couple of reclamation projects that didn’t pan out in Brown and Samorukov. The Blues acquired Brown, the 11th overall pick in 2016, from the Senators in September of 2021 in exchange for forward Zach Sanford. He’s managed 69 games for the Blues across two seasons since then but scored just six goals and 17 points while continuing to struggle with injuries. If he stays with an NHL organization, he’ll be settling for a two-way deal on the open market. Europe is also a strong possibility for the 6-foot-6, 25-year-old center.
The Blues also acquired Samorukov in a swap, getting him in exchange for Klim Kostin from the Edmonton Oilers at the beginning of the 2022-23 campaign. He appeared in just two games for the Blues and took a step back defensively in the minors after the trade, posting just 20 points in 69 games for Springfield and a +1 rating after besting both those paces the year prior in the Oilers organization. A return to Russia could be in the cards for him.
St. Louis Blues Recall Three Players
The St. Louis Blues are down to their final two games of the season, and will not be making the playoffs this year. They don’t play again until Wednesday and close out their season with games on consecutive nights against the Dallas Stars. According to Lou Korac of NHL.com, it appears they will be adding some reinforcements to the lineup to give a trio of prospects a taste of NHL action before the season comes to a close. The Blues have announced Joel Hofer, Tyler Tucker and Hugh McGing have all been called up from the Springfield Thunderbirds.
- Hofer is a 22-year-old goaltender who was drafted in the fourth round of the 2018 NHL Draft. He has had a solid season with the Thunderbirds, posting a 2.57 GAA to go with a .918 SV% and a 25-15-5 record in 45 contests. He has also played five NHL games this season where he put up a 2.79 GAA and a .915 SV%, showing some promise in limited duty. The Blues need to find a solution in goal with Jordan Binnington signed long term but struggling and Thomas Greiss a pending unrestricted free agent this summer. Hofer has played well enough this season to show he could be the goaltender of the future in St. Louis.
- Tucker was a seventh-round pick of the Blues in 2018 and has split this season between St. Louis and Springfield. The 6-foot-1 and 204 pound defenseman has put up three goals and 21 points in 39 AHL games while playing a steady defensive game as well. He has been called up already this season, compiling 24 NHL games and scoring one goal and four points. The 23 year old will look to show he can compete for a roster spot next season, even though the Blues have seven NHL defenders signed through 2023-24.
- McGing was a fifth-round pick in the 2018 NHL Draft and is yet to make his NHL debut. The 24-year-old forward is in his third AHL season and has scored 15 goals and 35 points in 68 games for the Thunderbirds. He may get a chance to play in his first NHL game with the Blues playing out the string later this week.