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Blues Aren’t Expected To Re-Sign Ivan Barbashev

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While there are some notable forwards that have a shot at moving between now and the March 3rd trade deadline, some teams looking for upgrades might instead be aiming for someone a little lower in the lineup.  Those squads should be keeping tabs on the Blues as Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli reports that the team has informed Ivan Barbashev that he won’t be re-signed for next season and they expect to trade in the next few weeks.

2021-22 was a breakout season for the 27-year-old.  With his career highs being 14 goals, 15 assists, and 26 points (set over two years), he blew past those last year with 24 goals and 36 assists in 81 games, becoming a key part of their attack in the process.

However, Barbashev hasn’t been able to repeat those numbers this season.  That shouldn’t come as much of a surprise considering the jumps from a year ago.  But what bodes well for St. Louis in a potential swap is that the forward is on pace to post numbers that could beat those career bests before last season.  With 24 points in 51 games, he’s playing at a 39-point pace.

Barbashev is in the final season of his contract, one that has turned out to be quite a bargain at an AAV of $2.25MM.  Assuming that St. Louis is willing to retain up to the maximum 50% ($1.125MM), that would drop him to a price point that many teams – even the really cap-strapped ones – should be able to afford.

In an ideal world, St. Louis probably wouldn’t mind keeping Barbashev around.  However, their cap situation makes that idea basically impossible.  The team has over $69MM committed to just a dozen players for next season per CapFriendly and they need to either re-sign or replace Vladimir Tarasenko and Ryan O’Reilly (replacing both seems to be the likeliest direction at this point) and fill out the rest of the roster.  By the time they do that, they won’t be able to afford Barbashev on a market-value contract.

As a player that can play both center and the wing, kill penalties in a pinch, and contribute some secondary scoring in a middle-six role, Barbashev can fill a useful role on several teams.  With what should be a fairly low price tag in terms of the impact on the salary cap, he’ll fit on the books of quite a few teams as well.  Accordingly, while Tarasenko and O’Reilly might be the headline names, Barbashev is likely to have a strong trade market of his own in the coming weeks.

Niko Mikkola Becomes Potential Deadline Target

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  • Another name that has emerged as a deadline candidate is Niko Mikkola of the St. Louis Blues, according to Seravalli, who profiled his case yesterday. Mikkola is a pending UFA who could offer physical, shutdown play in a depth role for a contender this season. Given his age – the big Finn won’t turn 27 until April – he could also be a candidate for an extension with whatever team acquires him, should the Blues decide to sell.

Snapshots: Puljujarvi, Korchinski, Walsh

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After a slow start, things haven’t gotten any better for Edmonton Oilers winger Jesse Puljujarvi this season. As his ice time continues to dwindle, currently being utilized in a fourth-line role, so does his trade value. The 2016 fourth-overall pick has just 10 points in 49 games this season after a 35-point campaign last year.

With Edmonton expected to go all-in at this year’s trade deadline, Puljujarvi will likely see his Oilers tenure end by March 3 to make room on the roster. Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli outlined some potential destinations for the Finnish winger, also reporting that general manager Ken Holland sent a note to all 31 other NHL teams two weeks ago that Puljujarvi was available for trade.

That trade could come sooner rather than later, as the Oilers need to clear salary to activate Kailer Yamamoto from long-term injured reserve. They have at least another few days, as he’s not eligible to return until February 12. Seravalli lists the Florida Panthers, St. Louis Blues, and Tampa Bay Lightning as potential fits for Puljujarvi in a hockey trade but also says to keep the possibility of a pure cap-dump move to a salary cap floor-hugging team in mind.

  • In a mailbag piece released Wednesday, Scott Powers of The Athletic noted that 2022 first-round selection Kevin Korchinski could crack the Chicago Blackhawks’ NHL lineup out of training camp to start the 2023-24 season. Powers said the Blackhawks organization was impressed with his training camp before this season opened, and that “all signs” point to Korchinski being NHL-ready. Still 18, the left-shot defenseman has 40 points in 30 games with the WHL’s Seattle Thunderbirds this season.
  • TSN’s Darren Dreger reports that current United States Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh is the current front-runner to replace Donald Fehr as the NHLPA’s Executive Director. Dreger says an NHLPA board meeting is scheduled for tomorrow, which could yield a vote on whether to instate Walsh as the league’s top player representative. The former mayor of Boston, Massachusetts, has a strong labor union background and is certainly an interesting selection.

St. Louis Blues Reassign Nikita Alexandrov, Jake Neighbours

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The St. Louis Blues are into the break and won’t play again until February 11. That’s true at least for most of the roster. Nikita Alexandrov and Jake Neighbours are on their way to the Springfield Thunderbirds to keep playing over the next few days.

Springfield has three games this week – important opportunities for development that the team won’t overlook. Alexandrov has already spent most of his season in the minor leagues, registering 12 goals and 20 points in 23 games. During his 18 games at the NHL level, the 22-year-old rookie has five points.

Neighbours, 20, has played 27 games with St. Louis this season and has eight points. That’s not exactly the production he’s used to, after dominating the WHL for the last three years. In the AHL he’s been much more comfortable, with seven goals and 14 points in 19 games, but it looks like the NHL is where he’ll stay for most of this year.

The 2020 first-round pick has a bright future in St. Louis, and if the Blues end up moving out some pieces at the deadline there will be more offensive minutes available for players like him to step up.

Latest On Vladimir Tarasenko

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  • It has been widely reported that the New Jersey Devils are seeking to upgrade their forward corps by adding a top-six winger this deadline season. One option for the team could be St. Louis Blues winger Vladimir Tarasenko. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman spoke on the 32 Thoughts podcast about this, stating that the Devils have had interest in acquiring Tarasenko in the past. Timo Meier’s name is also in the mix, but now it seems possible that the Devils could be targeting Tarasenko as well.

Matthew Peca Clears Waivers

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Jan 27: Peca has cleared waivers and can continue to play with the Thunderbirds.

Jan 26: Two players are coming off injured reserve for the St. Louis Blues. Robert Bortuzzo is joining the active roster, while Matthew Peca, who has been on season-opening injured reserve, has been placed on waivers according to Chris Johnston of NorthStar Bets.

Peca, 29, has spent the last two weeks on a conditioning loan to the AHL, where he recorded five points in six games for the Springfield Thunderbirds. His placement on waivers today allows him to continue playing for the minor league club, but requires activation from IR.

Of course, another team could also claim the depth forward. Through parts of several seasons, Peca has totaled 83 NHL games and scored 21 points. Last season for St. Louis he suited up just five times but was outstanding for the Thunderbirds, scoring 23 goals and 60 points in 68 games.

Bortuzzo, meanwhile, last played on January 7 and has appeared in 30 games for the Blues this season. The veteran defender has just one point in those games and averages 12 minutes a night in a very specific role.

Activating him now will give the Blues a bit more toughness and depth on the back end, but shouldn’t have much of an impact on their overall play. With him on the roster, the Blues are now carrying eight defensemen. Calle Rosen was the scratch in the team’s most recent game.

St. Louis Blues Recall Nikita Alexandrov; Reassign Tyler Tucker

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After activating Robert Bortuzzo yesterday, the St. Louis Blues ended up with eight healthy defensemen on the roster. That was never going to last long, and today they’ve solved the problem by sending Tyler Tucker to the AHL. Nikita Alexandrov has been recalled in his place.

Tucker, 22, has played in 12 games for the Blues this season, showing he’s much more than the average seventh-round pick. The young defenseman has just one point but rarely looks overmatched, and should likely play a role on the team in the future.

For now, though, he’ll rejoin the Springfield Thunderbirds where he has 13 points in 25 games.

Alexandrov, 22, continues his yo-yo season, coming back up after just a few days. The young forward has four points in 16 games so far and should also get a bigger look down the stretch, especially if the Blues end up selling at the deadline. The 2019 second-round pick has 12 goals and 20 points in 23 games with the Thunderbirds.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Latest On Ivan Barbashev

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  • On Insider Trading, Johnston also issued an update on St. Louis Blues forward Ivan Barbashev. He reported that Barbashev “is a name that has started to circulate” on the trade market, even though the Blues are still holding out some hope that they could go on a run that would put them back into the playoff mix. The 27-year-old forward is an unrestricted free agent after this season and has scored 23 points in 48 games. While that points production doesn’t jump off the page, it’s worth remembering that Barbashev scored 26 goals and 60 points just a year ago.

Ryan O’Reilly Hopes To Stay With St. Louis

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There are two big question marks for the St. Louis Blues as they head into the trade deadline. What happens to Vladimir Tarasenko, a player who has spent his entire career with one organization, and what happens to captain Ryan O’Reilly, the addition that put them over the top a few years ago?

Tarasenko returned from injury this week, topping 17 minutes in his first game back, a loss to the Buffalo Sabres. Losses are piling up for the Blues these days, who are now sitting sixth in the Central Division with a 23-22-3 record. The 31-year-old sniper once submitted a trade request to try and start fresh somewhere else, and it seems like that’s where the relationship is headed again. A Tarasenko trade is likely, unless the next few weeks hold a remarkable turnaround for the Blues.

For O’Reilly, the other notable pending free agent forward that has been the subject of trade rumors, things aren’t so clear. He isn’t back on the ice yet, nearly a month after breaking his foot in a New Year’s Eve game against the Minnesota Wild. He also isn’t ready to say goodbye to St. Louis, where he won a Conn Smythe trophy en route to the Stanley Cup.

In an exclusive interview with Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic, O’Reilly was clear:

This is where I want to be. I hope I don’t get moved, but I think things will probably progress, especially with the deadline coming up and the talks with that. We’ll see how it goes. We’re starting to get into that.

“That” in this case is extension talks, though it doesn’t seem like things are very far along at this point. O’Reilly went as far as saying he would give the Blues a discount, given his success there.

But even with a team-friendly deal, can the Blues afford to pass up the assets they would get for O’Reilly at the deadline?

The veteran center will turn 32 in a few weeks, and has seen his offensive production almost disappear this season. A player who was once known for his playmaking ability, he has just six assists through 37 games. Ten goals puts him on his regular pace, but it just hasn’t been the same for O’Reilly or the Blues this year.

He also carries no trade protection in the seven-year, $52.5MM deal that will expire at the end of this season. It wouldn’t be the first time he finds himself on the move. O’Reilly was originally drafted by the Colorado Avalanche, before a 2015 trade took him to the Buffalo Sabres. Three years after that he was on his way to St. Louis, and now after five years with the Blues, he might be headed to another team.

There are few players in the league that seem so perfectly built for the playoffs as O’Reilly. At his best, he can be one of the most productive two-way centers in the league, shutting down opponents and driving offense at the same time. That’s what he was in 2019, when he led all postseason players with 23 points. Just last year he had seven goals and 12 points in 12 games for the Blues, and that success will be intriguing to contenders looking to beef up a second or third line.

If he had his way, there would be no trade. O’Reilly wants to stay in St. Louis, but it’s not up to him.

Robert Bortuzzo Could Return On Road Trip

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  • Blues defenseman Robert Bortuzzo could return at some point on their current road trip, relays NHL.com’s Lou Korac (Twitter link). The veteran has missed the last two-and-a-half weeks with a lower-body injury sustained against Montreal.  Bortuzzo doesn’t produce much offensively – he has just one point in 30 games this season – but is still a serviceable stay-at-home option on their third pairing.  Louis has an open roster spot at the moment so whenever he is eligible to be activated, they won’t need to make room for him.

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