St. Louis Blues Fans Might Need To Prepare For Disappointment

The St. Louis Blues are definitely going to be busy in the summer of 2018, in terms of talks and discussions. The end result might not be as much as we are all hoping for.

It’s amazing how one discussion can literally turn hope into despair. That is exactly what happened for yours truly regarding the summer operations for the St. Louis Blues.

I was listening to a radio discussion on 101 ESPN in St. Louis with Blues insider Jeremy Rutherford and Kevin Wheeler. In that discussion, Rutherford was talking about how the free agent crop was thin once you get past John Tavares and Ilya Kovalchuk.

Personally, I do not see Rutherford’s, or anyone’s interest for the Blues in Kovalchuk. The cons just outweigh the pros. The asking price is just too high for someone that will be 38-39 by the end of the contract he is reportedly asking for. The Blues need to improve, but that just does not seem the way to do it.

Clearly, Tavares has become the golden goose. He is the target of everyone’s affections, but that causes problems.

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We love St. Louis, but if you have yet to play here, there is little to attract a player outside of the money. Other teams have the same, or more, money to spend and the added attractiveness of location. The Blues have a definite uphill climb to acquire him.

Put me in the minority, but I do believe Doug Armstrong is going to do his best to woo Tavares. However, I am also in the side that believes it is simply not going to happen. He’s going to want too much money for too long and the Blues just won’t be able to pull it off.

After that, Rutherford brought up the trade we discussed here a few days ago, with St. Louis being interested in Ryan O’Reilly. The problem there, again, is the Blues will not be the only player in that game.

Having multiple suitors means the price goes up and you end up in a bidding war. So, the disappointment could come from two different fronts.

The first disappointment would be missing out on O’Reilly. He averages around 60 points per season and would be a solid addition up the middle. That is exactly what the Blues need, but there are going to be enough other teams interested that the Blues might not have enough to offer.

The second disappointment would be the price the Blues end up paying if they do land O’Reilly. If the cost keeps going up, the Blues are simply not going to come out of it with all their prospects still in place. So, as a fan you have to decide who you are most willing to give up. Robert Thomas is included in just about every trade rumor from the other team’s perspective. Jordan Kyrou‘s stock went way up after leading his team in scoring. Klim Kostin has a high ceiling and Ville Husso could be coveted if Buffalo needs a goaltender.

Add into the fact that you’re likely going to have to throw in a pick and perhaps even a current Blues roster player and you’ll never make all the fans happy. Whether this deal happens or not, fans are going to be upset with Armstrong.

Rutherford might not be an x’s and o’s expert, but he knows his stuff when it comes to these dealings. He admitted that Armstrong has to do something, but the tone of his voice made it sound like a pessimistic idea that any of these deals get done.

If the Blues, and their fans, have all their eggs in the O’Reilly, Tavares or Kovalchuk baskets, we might not have any of those eggs hatch.

I have no doubts that the Blues will not go into 2018-19 with the same roster they ended 2017-18. However, as individuals, we have to decide what is enough change.

We all want Tavares, but I just don’t see it happening. O’Reilly would be a great consolation prize, but the Blues are not going to get him for nothing as much as fans hope. Trades like Brayden Schenn for Jori Lehtera just don’t happen very often.

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So, we might need to temper out expectations. The team will be different next season, but we might not be making the earth-shattering deals that so many are expecting. That does not mean Armstrong is not trying, but a reflection of the Blues place in the pecking order.

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