By Andrew Allsman| Posted: June 5th, 2012| Contact |
The first few weeks of the offseason have already proven to be eventful for the St. Louis Blues. So far the Blues have already seen a new owner take the reins, an assistant coach and the team’s CEO leave the organization, and are perhaps about to lose team president, John Davidson, in the very near future. It has been an offseason of change for the Blues off of the ice in the front office, but one new face has also decided to join the Blues on the ice. 20-year old Vladimir Tarasenko, the Blues’ top prospect, made his long-awaited decision this past week and chose to come from Russia to North America and join the Blues organization. While the decision will not be made official until July 1, when Tarasenko is able to sign a contract, it appears that the Blues may have run into a bit of luck, and maybe, just maybe have drafted a star.
Yes, you read correctly, Tarasenko is said to have all the makings of a star player. His first NHL season will give us an idea of what type of skill he possesses, and how well he uses it in the NHL, but there is no doubt that there is something special about this 6-foot 202 pound Russian born player. The Blues were hoping that Tarasenko came over to play in the NHL, but they knew that whatever choice he made, they needed to know of his decision before the NHL draft, which takes place at the end of June.
The Blues have a strong nucleus of forwards, and with many
prospects in the system, the Blues know they have some room to maneuver this
offseason. The one thing that remained
uncertain about their future was Tarasenko.
If Tarasenko had decided to stay in Russia, the Blues would likely be
unable to risk trading away one of their young NHL forwards. Now that Tarasenko has chosen St. Louis, the
Blues could justify trading away some talent at the forward position for a
hefty return in another area the Blues feel they could use improvement.
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| Photo by Scott Neer of TSNPhotography |
Blues general manager Doug Armstrong assured fans that there
would be change and that the roster would be different next season, but he did
so without elaborating (obviously) on his plans. Could the Blues be open to trading away a
player like Oshie or Perron for defensive talent and would that even be
conceivable? It’s hard to disagree with
that logic after seeing the need for defensive talent exploited in the
playoffs. To really see Alex Pietrangelo
at his best, the Blues will need to find someone that can compliment him and
his play. You can be sure the Blues will
look into Nashville’s Ryan Suter, a potential unrestricted free agent, but if
that route proves to be ineffective and/or too expensive, the Blues may find
themselves pursuing another option, and with Tarasenko’s decision now known,
general manager Doug Armstrong can justifiably explore all routes in order to
make the Blues better.
Make no mistake about it, if Armstrong deems it necessary,
he will pull the trigger on a deal that benefits his team. Whether that means trading away an Oshie or a
Perron remains to be seen, but with so much talent at the forward position,
there is a very good chance that one of the roster forwards from last season
will find a home elsewhere in order to bolster the Blues in other areas. Tarasenko’s decision impacted the Blues in
more ways than most think, he has brought talent for years to come with him
from Russia, but he has also given Doug Armstrong and the Blues the freedom to
do what is necessary for the team.
Should the Blues consider trading away a forward?
Should the Blues consider trading away a forward?