St. Louis Blues Free Agent Wish List
Lou Korac of the Hockey News: Korac writes if the Blues want to get back into the playoffs they will need to improve their roster. While the Blues want to retool and build from within, they must also test the free-agent waters on July 1st.
The Blues will have $14 million, with players coming off the books and the salary cap going up by $5 million. They could also make trades to improve the roster.
Here are some players the Blues could go after, with everyone going after 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.
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St. Louis is not afraid of signing 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 projected to get a five or six-year deal with an AAV of $5-$6 million.
Building down the middle is vital to a team’s success. Lindholm will be a tough get for the Blues. A better option would be Monahan. It might be a cheaper option to fill a need.
If the Blues want to add skill, size, and players with an edge and a nose for the net, they could look at Stephenson and Bertuzzi. Not to mention a reunion with Perron. Speaking of reunions, they could get Joshua and Maroon as bottom-six forwards.
The Blues could upgrade on the backend by adding Pesce, Grzelyck, and Ekman-Larsson. Not to mention also bring back Edmundson. However, they might have to remove a current defenseman to make the dollars work.
A few white whales are on this, like Kane and Stamkos. Stamkos could have big dollars if he hits the open market. He will most likely stay, similar to Kane, who is looking for a multiple-year contract, according to reports.