St. Louis Blues: All Quiet On The UFA Front

There have been two names, unsurprisingly, in the news for the St. Louis Blues. The rest of the team’s unrestricted free agents are extremely quiet.

The St. Louis Blues have several key pieces that might not be on the roster next season. The biggest focus has been on some of the bigger names, not only because of their standing in the team but because their names have been involved in the news/rumor mills.

Clearly the most talk has surrounded Kevin Shattenkirk, who is not even a free agent. There were early rumors of him going to Edmonton. Then the talk shifted further east. In truth, there isn’t anything concrete going on to really hang your hat on.

The opposite may be true of the St. Louis captain. Destinations are not really included, but the writing seems to be on the wall for David Backes‘ departure. The Blues frontman has put his home on the market to be sold. Players often change housing, but the timing does not make it likely that negotiations are going well.

The interesting thing is the absolute lack of news regarding any of the other unrestricted free agents from the Blues. There hasn’t been much word on the Blues speaking to any of them or any other teams showing interest either.

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Troy Brouwer had a very early rumor about him. Initially after the season Brouwer told St. Louis media that he would like to stay, but doesn’t know the Blues’ situation. Only a day or two later, Brouwer said something similar about the possibility of playing for his hometown team, the Vancouver Canucks.

There’s really no problem with Brouwer discussing Vancouver. Firstly, he was asked a question and he’s not going to just ignore it. Secondly, it is his hometown so talk is bound to occur. The only issue was the terminology. To say almost the same thing to both cities, but say he doesn’t know their cap situations seems like a very political answer.

Even more intriguing is the lack of national whispers about anyone outside of Shattenkirk or Backes. There is very little talk about Brouwer and virtually nothing regarding Steve Ott, Kyle Brodziak or Scottie Upshall.

We already mentioned the Vancouver aspect for Brouwer. Outside of that, the only team that has even popped up is Montreal. Even then, it’s mostly just chatter on Winning Habit, not really from the actual teams.

Brouwer was only mentioned as being “on the radar” by SportsNet in Canada. Brodziak, Ott and Upshall aren’t on the list at all.

In the grand scheme of things, it’s not overly surprising. All three of the other names were on the Blues’ fourth line. Fourth liners aren’t usually big news makers when it comes to outside teams thinking about making a signing.

They are usually depth players that might stay free agents well into the summer. For there to be no whispers from the Blues is a little more surprising though.

Our piece about the potential lineup for St. Louis if no UFA’s returned showed that the fourth line is really where the depth players are sorely needed. If the price is right, Brodziak and Upshall should be key players for the Blues to re-sign.

These are definitely the quiet times of the year. You’re still two weeks out from the NHL Draft and a little under three weeks away from the start of free agency.

Teams are sneaking in their vacations and a lot of front offices probably aren’t really doing much. Even so, the lack of discussion about UFA’s is a bit interesting.

Next: Backes Not Worth The Money He Will Be Given Elsewhere

If the Blues can’t find a certifiable upgrade further up the lineup, then bringing back Brodziak and Upshall is almost a must. Ott could still bring plenty of value, but it would likely need to be at a price under the over $2 million he made last year.

Clearly, the news will come fast and furious very soon. Even so, the lack of it, even in the media, about certain names is interesting at the very least.

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