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St. Louis Blues Acquire Kevin Hayes

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The wait is over, and it’s a bit of a letdown. The long-winded trade between the Philadelphia Flyers and St. Louis Blues is complete, and center Kevin Hayes will be heading to the Blues for a 2024 sixth-round pick, the teams announced.

Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli reports the Flyers, as expected, will be retaining half of Hayes’ salary for the life of his contract. For the next three seasons, both the Flyers and Blues will be on the hook for $3.57MM in cap space for Hayes.

Fans of both teams were expecting a much larger deal to come through, but with Blues defenseman Torey Krug reportedly opting not to waive his no-trade clause, the additional pieces in the trade, expected to be Flyers defenseman Travis Sanheim and one of St. Louis’ late first-round picks in this week’s draft, were removed.

While most would agree Hayes was overpaid on his deal, earning him more than $7MM, a 50 percent discount is an extremely appealing acquisition for the retooling Blues. He’s still a capable middle-six center, and his acquisition will alleviate Pavel Buchnevich, allowing him to return to his natural spot on the wing after shifting to center at the end of 2022-23.

St. Louis will be Hayes’ fourth team in his nine-year, 634-game NHL career. He’s had consistent offensive production throughout his career, routinely scoring between 40 and 55 points (at least in full seasons), but he was given far too lofty expectations when he signed in Philadelphia.

The messaging is clear here from the Flyers’ side: a rebuild is here, and it’s massive. Opting to retain a decent chunk of change on Hayes for three seasons – with essentially no compensation – signals they don’t anticipate spending to the cap ceiling anytime soon.

While moving on from Hayes doesn’t free up cap space that the Flyers need to use, it does free up some needed roster spots down the middle of the ice. Both Morgan Frost and Noah Cates are in line for more ice time after strong campaigns in 2022-23, and with Sean Couturier slated to return to play next season, Hayes could have pushed one (or both) of Cates and Frost into a bottom-six role.

Hayes’ 54 points in 81 games last season would have ranked fifth on the Blues. He’ll likely slot into a third-line center spot there behind Robert Thomas and Brayden Schenn, although he could overtake Schenn on the depth chart if things go well.

ESPN’s Kevin Weekes was first to report the trade.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

St. Louis Blues Issue Three Qualifying Offers

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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 Hire Alexander Steen

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The St. Louis Blues are bringing back a familiar face, hiring Alexander Steen as a European Player Development Consultant. He will normally work overseas but will be back in town to help with the upcoming prospect camp.

Steen, 39, retired from the NHL in 2020 after 1,018 regular season games, 765 of which came with the Blues. Never a star player, he was one of the most consistent, versatile members of the St. Louis roster for a decade, setting a career-high with 33 goals in 2013-14. He played in all 26 games of the club’s 2019 Stanley Cup run, providing his usual strong defensive play even in a limited role.

Selected 24th overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2002, Steen knows how the process goes for exciting European prospects. It took him three full seasons in Sweden before he was ready to come to North America, but that development time was well worth it.

He scored 18 goals and 45 points as a rookie and would never look back. Steen never played a single game in the minor leagues—the epitome of NHL-ready.

He’ll now try to help get the Blues’ new prospects to that point, assisting European players in developing the habits they need to succeed in North America.

Poll: What Has Been The Most Impactful Pre-Draft Trade?

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The 2023 NHL Draft is now only three days away, and there has already been a flurry of activity in the NHL trade market. Yesterday, we saw the Colorado Avalanche acquire Ryan Johansen from the Nashville Predators, and the Arizona Coyotes acquire Sean Durzi from the Los Angeles Kings. Following up on those deals, there is heavy expectation that the St. Louis Blues will acquire Kevin Hayes from the Philadelphia Flyers, and the Carolina Hurricanes will add back Anthony DeAngelo to their lineup. If yesterday didn’t bring enough action, it’s also expected that the Kings are close to acquiring Pierre-Luc Dubois from the Winnipeg Jets.

After losing Nazem Kadri to the Calgary Flames last offseason, the Avalanche had a very difficult time replacing the void left by Kadri on the team’s second forward line. Throughout this past season, Colorado originally tried to patrol Alex Newhook in that role, but after failing to live up to expectations, J.T. Compher was thrust into that role. Compher did excel, scoring 17 goals and 35 assists this season, the best statistical performance of his career. Unfortunately for the Avalanche, Compher is set to enter unrestricted free agency, and Colorado may not have the cap space to retain him.

By acquiring Johansen from the Predators, the Avalanche clearly wanted to make an outside move to complete their second line. This past season, Johansen did not play particularly well, scoring 12 goals and 16 assists in 55 games, having his season ended by a foot injury in February. However, the year prior, Johansen was a proficient offensive player in Nashville, scoring 26 goals and 37 assists.

Sticking in the Central Division, the expected acquisition of Hayes for the Blues should fill the void left behind by Ryan O’Reilly last season. Hayes has very much had an up-and-down career, having much of his time spent in Philadelphia hampered by injuries. This past season, he did have the best offensive output so far with the Flyers, scoring 18 goals and 36 assists in 81 games. It was well known that Hayes and head coach John Tortorella sparred quite consistently, and it was becoming more and more clear that his time in Philadelphia would be coming to an end.

In Los Angeles, the Kings’ trade of Durzi largely indicated that the team was trying to move out money to acquire better talent. In Durzi, Los Angeles largely had a defenseman that was exceptional at moving the puck but was not as responsible on the defensive side of the game. He did score 38 points last year for the Kings, but the underlying defensive metrics were not positive. Opening up $1.7MM with that trade, it has now been reported that the Kings are expected to acquire Dubois, as well as sign him to an extension. Not only will this move allow the Kings to strengthen their second line, but by being able to move Phillip Danault to the third-line center position, Los Angeles may be one of the deepest teams in the Western Conference.

Lastly, the Hurricanes are bringing back a familiar face, as reports indicate that Carolina and Philadelphia are working on a trade. Last offseason, the Hurricanes felt that DeAngelo’s asking price on his next contract was too rich for their blood, and moved him to the Flyers for three draft picks. By acquiring DeAngelo, Carolina now has four defensemen set to hit unrestricted free agency next season, even though it does strengthen their blue line for next year.

After all the moves up to this point, which player do you think will have the biggest impact on their next team?

What Has Been The Most Impactful Pre-Draft Trade?
Pierre-Luc Dubois (Los Angeles) 41.14% (476 votes)
Ryan Johansen (Colorado) 30.16% (349 votes)
Kevin Hayes (St. Louis) 15.73% (182 votes)
Sean Durzi (Arizona) 6.83% (79 votes)
Anthony DeAngelo (Carolina) 6.14% (71 votes)
Total Votes: 1,157

Flyers, Blues Working On Kevin Hayes Trade

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06/25/23 11:10 am: Di Marco has added to Friedman’s report that Krug is planning on staying put in St. Louis. He tweeted that Hayes could be the lone player headed to St. Louis in a re-worked trade, in a deal similar to the Ryan Johansen trade from yesterday.

Di Marco said that the Flyers “expect a lot back if this is the case,” meaning what once looked to be a larger deal with major pieces changing hands and potentially netting the Flyers another first-round pick could now be a more straightforward transaction.

06/25/23 9:30 am: Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman has reported that Krug “is leaning towards not waiving his no-trade clause.” Since Krug has a full no-trade clause on his contract, he not only has the right to veto any deal that would land him in Philadelphia, but any trade in general.

Based on Friedman’s report, it seems Krug is leaning towards using his no-trade rights to guarantee an outcome where he remains in St. Louis. It’s a development that has the potential to markedly change the complexion of this Hayes trade, or maybe even cause the deal to fall apart completely.

06/24/23 9:05 pm: The main writer for the St. Louis Blues on The Athletic, Jeremy Rutherford, released some definitive details on the trade. Although nothing is set in stone as of right now, in his article in The Athletic, he confirms that both Hayes and Sanheim will be headed to St. Louis, while Torey Krug and one of the Blues’ first-round picks in this year’s draft will head to Philadelphia. However, because of the no-trade clause in his contract, Krug will not be wearing a Flyers sweater next season. This would be the major hurdle in the trade, as the Flyers’ are looking for a third team to facilitate another trade for Krug.

06/24/23 6:52 pm: TVA’s Renaud Lavoie adds Marco Scandella is not the Blues party holding up the deal – he does not have full trade protection, and the Flyers are not on his no-trade list.

06/24/23 6:19 pm: Multiple reports suggest a Blues player has not waived a no-trade or no-move clause, holding up the trade going through. Rutherford reports this player is NOT Colton Parayko or Nick Leddy. The Athletic’s Charlie O’Connor reports that Flyers defender Travis Sanheim could be heading to St. Louis along with Hayes, but the moving parts in the deal are far from finalized.

06/24/23 4:10 pm: The Philadelphia Flyers and St. Louis Blues are finalizing a trade revolving around center Kevin Hayes, according to reports from The Athletic’s Jeremy Rutherford and The Fourth Period’s Anthony Di Marco.

Both DiMarco’s and Rutherford’s reports indicate this is set to be quite a complex trade with multiple moving parts. The Flyers were reportedly looking to add a third first-round selection in this year’s draft, while the Blues were looking to trade one of their two first-round picks later in the draft (25th or 29th overall).

Hayes was one of many Flyers involved in rampant trade speculation in recent weeks, although he’d mostly been connected to the Columbus Blue Jackets going back to last year. Those talks, which continued into this offseason, reportedly fell off last week.

Now 31 years old, Hayes was still among the Flyers’ highest-scoring players during a tough year offensively for the team. His 18 goals, 36 assists, and 54 points were actually his best point-producing pace since signing a seven-year, $50MM contract with Philadelphia in free agency in 2019. Those 36 assists led the team, and his 54 points were good enough for second on the team behind Travis Konecny, who was the only point-per-game Flyer this season.

Hayes still has three years remaining on that contract, which pays him $7.143MM per season. It’s a very steep cap hit for a player with defensive deficiencies who’s only a safe bet for 45-60 points in a full season, which would lead to questions about salary retention. The Blues have some steep contracts paid out to their defenseman, though, which could soften the blow if they’re able to move one of them to the Flyers in this deal – which is poised to include multiple NHL roster players in both directions.

This page will be updated as details of the return are reported.

Faulk Not Apart of Hayes Deal

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As the hockey world continues to wait on the second-big center trade of the day, one that is expected to see Kevin Hayes of the Philadelphia Flyers join the St. Louis Blues. Due to his cap hit of $7.14MM a year, there was always a guarantee that the Blues would likely have to send some money back. A complicated trade such as this one usually doesn’t take a couple of hours to complete, as it could go on for a couple of days, especially if a third team needs to get involved.

As of right now, there is no knowledge on what assortment of players, picks, or prospects will be headed back in either direction, but we do know a couple of players that will not be included in the deal on the Blues side of the action. Renaud Lavoie has already reported that St. Louis defenseman, Marco Scandella, is not the one holding up the trade, as the Flyers are not on his no-move list. Additionally, Lavoie notes that Colton Parayko and Nick Leddy have also not been asked to waive their no-trade clauses.

A few moments after the news from Lavoie, Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic reported that defenseman Justin Faulk has also not been asked to waive his no-trade clause as well. This news is important for a couple of reasons. With some deductive reasoning, these reports could reasonably be interpreted as the Blues are trying to send a defenseman to the Flyers, and there is only one more St. Louis defenseman that has a sizeable contract, that player being Torey Krug. It appears that if the Blues are indeed trying to send Krug the other way, the no-trade clause in his contract appears to be holding up the deal, which may cause Philadelphia to seek out a third team to facilitate the trade.

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Blues Re-Sign Scott Perunovich

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The Blues have taken care of one of their pending restricted free agents, announcing the re-signing of defenseman Scott Perunovich to a one-year contract.  It’s a one-way deal worth $775K, the NHL minimum for next season.

The 24-year-old was expected to push for a full-time spot with St. Louis in 2022-23.  However, he suffered a fractured shoulder in the preseason, causing him to miss six months.  Upon his return, Perunovich was assigned to AHL Springfield where he was quite productive, notching 20 points in just 22 games.  That earned him a spot with Team USA at the World Championship where he once again put up the points, collecting eight in ten contests.

Perunovich, a 2018 second-round pick, has just 19 NHL regular season games under his belt, all coming in 2021-22.  That, coupled with a lengthy injury history, didn’t give him much leverage to work with in contract discussions this summer, even with arbitration eligibility.  Instead, the two sides have found a reasonable compromise, one that sees Perunovich take less than his qualifying offer to keep the cap hit low while getting a fully-guaranteed salary.  He will once again be a restricted free agent next summer with arbitration rights.

Perunovich is still waiver-exempt next season until he plays in 37 games.  As a result, it’s possible that he remains with the Thunderbirds in 2023-24 but if St. Louis is able to move one of their veteran blueliners in the coming days or weeks, he’ll be in line to push for a full-time spot with the Blues while giving their back end a boost offensively.

St. Louis Blues Continue To Shop Late First Round Picks

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  • One team that seems like a natural fit for one of those deals is the St. Louis Blues, who Pagnotta notes continue to dangle either the 25th overall pick (acquired from the Toronto Maple Leafs) or the 29th overall pick (obtained from the Dallas Stars via the New York Rangers) – but not both. With the team looking to deal from their pool of defensemen, a trade offer based around a late first and one of Colton Parayko, Marco Scandella, or Nick Leddy could net them a solid young piece on offense.

St. Louis Blues Re-Sign Adam Gaudette

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The St. Louis Blues have re-signed one of their few restricted free agents, as The St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Matthew DeFranks reports they’re bringing back forward Adam Gaudette on a one-year, two-way contract extension. Per DeFranks, the deal will pay Gaudette $775K in the NHL and $400K in the AHL but doesn’t carry a minimum salary guarantee if he spends the whole season in the minors.

St. Louis acquired the 26-year-old four months ago as a minor piece in the Ryan O’Reilly trade with the Toronto Maple Leafs. 2022-23 marked the first season Gaudette didn’t see any NHL action since turning pro in 2018, instead playing 65 AHL games split between the Toronto Marlies and Springfield Thunderbirds. He hasn’t been able to produce with any consistency since notching 33 points in 59 games with the Vancouver Canucks in 2019-20, and he’s now on his fifth NHL organization in the past three seasons.

Extended time in the minors may have renewed his offensive confidence, though. While not breaking any records, he did put up a very respectable 27 goals and 51 points in the AHL this year and added a goal in two playoff games for Springfield.

Gaudette did have arbitration rights but would’ve had no leverage to receive anything higher than his qualifying offer of $787.5K. While the NHL cap hit comes in below that, the deal continues a trend of players taking less NHL money than their qualifying offer would have granted them in exchange for more compensation at the minor-league level. He’s a reclamation project-type player, which the Blues seem to be keen on acquiring as of late, and he could push for a fourth-line role in 2023-24 without much eligible competition in the Blues’ AHL and prospect ranks.

Alexander Steen Could Join Blues In Front Office Role

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  • 2019 Stanley Cup champion Alexander Steen could return to NHL work in some capacity, surmises Bally Sports Midwest’s Andy Strickland. The 2002 first-round selection of the Toronto Maple Leafs would go on to play just over 1,000 NHL games, 765 of which came in a St. Louis Blues jersey. A revered versatile two-way forward, Steen retired 18 months after lifting the Stanley Cup for the first time in his career. If he is to join the ranks of NHLers to keep working in the league in front-office roles, it’s hard to imagine it being with another team than the Blues.

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