There was a giagantic trade that just happened for the St. Louis Blues just a few days shy of the 2026 NHL Draft. Jordan Kyrou is heading to Washington, and there are now three perfect outcomes that came from it.
Let's get through it.
1. McMichael is now the second-line center
Coming over from the Kyrou blockbuster is Connor McMichael, a distinguished 25-year-old center. He established himself as a relibale second-line center with the Capitals, and now, he is going to likely assume that role with the Blues.
This is a perfect scenario that moves Dalibor Dvorsky and Pius Suter into a battle for the third-line center and fourth-line center spots. We won't know until training camp, but right now, McMichael should be a go at 2C.
2. Carbonneau has a clearer path to the NHL
With Kyrou moved off of the second-line winger spot, that now leaves a big hole. Enter Justin Carbonneau, and a very clear path to the NHL, and to top-six minutes. If he has continued to evolve in the QMJHL, and another solid performance in training camp and preseason, the spot should be his to take.
The Blues are moving in a direction to embrace these younger players, and giving Carbonneau 84 games of solid minutes will help him, not hurt him. Think of what it did for Jimmy Snuggerud.
3. A set of brothers could be coming to the Blues, just not who you think
The Blues now have the 15th and 16th picks, to go along with the 11th and 29th selections in the first round. There are a set of brothers that were anticipated to become Blues, in Otto and Ivar Stenberg, but that might not be the case anymore as Ivar will likely be gone with the second pick.
There is another set of twin brothers that could be taken with those picks, and both fit every criteria for the Blues archetype. Liam and Markus Ruck of the Medicine Hat Tigers of the WHL are both commited to the University of North Dakota, and both hope to be playing for the same NHL team oneday. How about from day one with the Blues taking them with No. 15 and No. 16?
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