St. Louis Blues Free Agent Wishlist
Lou Korac of Hockey News: Korac writes if the Blues want to get back to the playoffs they will need to improve their roster. While the Blues want to recycle and build in, they also have to test the water that comes in for free on July 1st.
The Blues will have $14 million, players off the books and a salary increase of $5 million. They can also trade to improve the system.
Here are other players the Blues could pursue, with everyone following Jake Guentzel and Sam Reinhart.
The list includes Jake DeBrusk, Elias Lindholm, Sean Monahan, Chandler Stephenson, Dakota Joshua, Pat Maroon, Tyler Bertuzzi, David Perron, Brett Pesce, Joel Edmundson, Dakota Joshua, Patrick Kane, Steven Stamkos, Matt Grzelcyk, Oliver Ekman-Larsson.
NHLRumors.com Take
St. Louis is not afraid to sign pending UFAs from Boston. They did it with Torey Krug. Signing DeBrusk gives them a scoring winger who can play in the top six and is expected to get a five- or six-year deal with an AAV of $5-$6 million.
Building the middle ground is essential to the success of the team. Lindholm will be hard to find for the Blues. A better option would be Monahan. It would be a cheaper option to fill the need.
If the Blues want to add skill, size, and players with an edge and a nose for the net, they can look to Stephenson and Bertuzzi. Not to mention the reunion with Perron. Speaking of reunions, they could have Joshua and Maroon as the final six players.
The Blues could improve on the backend by adding Pesce, Grzelyck, and Ekman-Larsson. Not to mention bringing Edmundson back. However, they may have to remove the current protector to make the dollars work.
There are a few white whales in this, like Kane and Stamkos. Stamkos could fetch big dollars if he hits the open market. He is likely to stay, like Kane, who is looking for a multi-year contract, according to reports.
