The NHL Entry Draft is fast approaching, which means the St. Louis Blues have some decisions to make with their 19th overall pick: use it? Trade it? We won't know until the pick is in.
However, in the meantime, we can take a quick look at some of the players who could be available at 19th overall, which is right on the borderline between the Tier 4 and Tier 5 prospects, going by most draft rankings. The good news is, someone from a higher tier could fall right into the Blues' laps; the bad news is, they might have to pick from the top of the next tier down, though there are still some promising players there.
Let's break it down by position, since the Blues should have a veritable smorgasbord of options. Need a defenseman? Several are available. A forward? Centers, even! The top-ranked goaltender in the class? Should be there! We'll skip Joshua Ravensbergen in this article, though, since we've already made that bold suggestion, and focus on skaters.
Forwards
The Blues don't necessarily need a sparkling forward prospect, but the 2025 draft presents the opportunity to shore up the position with some swings for upside. Cullen Potter is one of the best skaters in the draft (if not the best) and, though small, currently plays center, which any team could use more of in their pipeline. In a similar vein is Braeden Cootes, another smallish center who lacks the speed/skating of Potter but has a more projectable game.
On the wings, there should be even more options. Though not flashy, I quite like Malcolm Spence, who's got projectable middle-six qualities and "plays the game the right way," which is something the Blues seem to value in their players. A bigger upside swing would be Lynden Lakovic, a 6-foot-4 left winger who could be quite the steal if he hits, but he doesn't always play as big as he is, and there are questions about his compete. If you're looking for compete, Carter Bear is another left winger who brings it every game--and has some high-end skill to go with it.
Defensemen
The defensemen available at 19 may be a bit more exciting than the forwards, or at least have the chance of playing in a team's top four and not ending up as solid-but-underwhelming bottom-sixers. If the Blues are lucky, right-shot Logan Hensler could be available--a talented, 6-foot-2 defenseman who can skate? What a steal that would be if Hensler can put it all together.
On the left side of the blue line, there could be Kashawn Aitcheson or Cam Reid available--and both are very different players. Aitcheson is a mean, physical, two-way defenseman who could inject some snarl into the Blues' lineup, while Reid is on the smaller side but skates well and can bring some offense from the backend. It's unlikely Aitcheson will be available at 19, but Reid should be if that's a direction the Blues want to go.
We've only got a few weeks left until the draft, and it's tough to guess what the Blues will do--though several mocks have some ideas. Still, it'll all come down to how the board falls.