The St. Louis Blues have had one of the most critical offseasons in quite a while. They failed to make the playoffs for the second consecutive season and now have to look toward the 2024 NHL Draft and free agency to make a big splash. Overall, they’ve made a lot of moves over the last 10 offseasons that led to where they are now.
Let’s look at the Blues’ top three offseason moves over the last 10 offseasons that significantly impacted the team.
3. Selecting Robert Thomas 20th Overall in 2017
This is probably one of the most overlooked moves in Blues history, but it’s important to note how great Robert Thomas is, and he wasn’t even a lottery pick. He was not only a gold medalist at the 2018 World Junior Championship (WJC), but he also became a Memorial Cup champion with the Hamilton Bulldogs of the OHL (Ontario Hockey League) and Memorial Cup Playoff MVP, scoring 32 points in 21 postseason games.
Thomas may as well be on his way to becoming one of the best playmakers in Blues history. He scored 57 assists in the 2021-22 season, the most by a Blues player since Pavol Demitra in 2002-03 and recently hit the 60-assist plateau this season since Bernie Federko in 1982-83.
Related: Blues’ 3-Round 2024 NHL Mock Draft
This season, he scored 86 points through a full 82 games and was an NHL All-Star for the first time. If he keeps up his fantastic performance, he can be a great superstar for this Blues team and a future captain. He is locked up with the Blues on an eight-year deal worth $65 million, which he signed in July 2022, another great move by the Blues in the offseason.
2. Signing David Perron in 2018 Free Agency
David Perron wasn’t much of a superstar, though he did provide some important traits to the Blues, especially in their 2018-19 Stanley Cup season. Initially drafted by the Blues in 2007 at 26th overall in the first round, he was flipped back and forth between the Blues and a few other teams, such as the Edmonton Oilers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Anaheim Ducks, and Vegas Golden Knights.
At the end of his season with the Golden Knights in 2017-18, after losing to the Washington Capitals in the Stanley Cup Final, he signed a four-year deal worth $16 million an AAV (annual average salary) of $4 million. In the 2018-19 season, he scored 46 points through 57 games, the fourth-most on the team that season, and had 16 points through 26 games in the playoffs after winning the Stanley Cup, the fifth points most on the team in that playoff run.
Perron was mainly a key asset on the power play. After winning the Stanley Cup, he consistently scored 20 or more power-play points until this past season with the Red Wings, when he only totaled 17 points. He also made the 2020 NHL All-Star Game while representing the Blues.
Now reaching the age of 36, he is close to the end of his career and holds many milestones in Blues history, such as being in the top 10 all-time in career points (465), goals (196), and seasons played (11) for the Blues.
1. Ryan O’Reilly to the Blues
On July 1, 2018, the Blues traded Patrik Berglund, Vladimir Sobotka, and Tage Thompson, a 2019 conditional first-round pick (31st overall), and a 2021 second-round pick (49th overall) to the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for Ryan O’Reilly. At the time, it seemed like a lot for O’Reilly, who was not more than a 60-plus point player; however, during the 2018-19 season, while the Blues were struggling to get wins, he was the only player who provided consistent point production.
At the end of that season, he finished with 77 points through 82 games and was the leading point producer in the playoffs to win the Stanley Cup for the Blues. He had 23 points in 26 playoff games that season and was awarded the Conn Smythe (playoff MVP) and Frank J. Selke Trophy (awarded to the National Hockey League’s best defensive forward).
Although the Blues gave up a star forward in Thompson, the Sabres still have yet to make the playoffs, even after he had a 94-point season in 2022-23. The rest of that trade wasn’t that much to worry about, as Berglund was near the decline of his career, Sobotka finished his NHL career and currently plays in the Czech Extraliga, the first-round pick became forward Ryan Johnson (signed his entry-level deal with the Sabres), and the second-round pick became defenseman Ben Roger who the Sabres didn’t sign. So, it’s safe to say the Blues won this trade.
Unfortunately, after the Blues’ Stanley Cup season, the team made many other changes, and O’Reilly got dealt to the Toronto Maple Leafs. However, the fact that he won a championship means the Blues got the most out of him.
Honorable Mentions
There were a lot of other Blues trades, signings, and draft picks that could’ve stolen the spot on the top three list. Still, it’s good to note that the Blue’s 2020 first-round selection of Jake Neighbours and 2022 first-round selection of Jimmy Snuggerud are some of the best picks they’ve ever made, which will benefit them greatly.
Neighbours hit the 20-goal milestone for the first time this season, and Snuggerud opted to continue his talented college run with the University of Minnesota. If the Blues keep drafting like they have over the past 10 years, they’ll have a solid team that could make the playoffs in the next few years and hopefully win another Stanley Cup.
