The chatter surrounding a potential Robert Thomas trade at this year’s NHL trade deadline has been one of the worst-kept secrets in the NHL. There has been plenty of speculation regarding Thomas being on the block, and, most importantly, the frontrunner to land Thomas.
That frontrunner by most accounts was the Utah Mammoth. While it might seem unusual to trade such a talented player to a division rival, the Blues’ purported trade deadline sell-off intended to recoup highly valuable assets.
And therein lies the alleged dealbreaker for the Blues.
St. Louis wasn’t just going to give Thomas away for a bunch of fringe NHLers and prospects. And the Blues certainly weren’t going to jettison their best player for a bunch of picks. The plan was to get back one or even two high-end prospects.
In particular, the Blues were really going to take the Mammoth to the cleaners in a Thomas trade. According to insider Elliotte Friedman, the Blues wanted one of Caleb Desnoyers or Tij Iginla.
“To me the most likely team was always Utah; at the end they felt that Utah wouldn't put Caleb Desnoyers or Tij Iginla in it and they (Blues) weren't doing it without at least one of them.”
As such, no Desnoyers and/or Iginla, no Thomas. The Mammoth pushed back from the table, and that was. But when looking at the prospects themselves, there’s good reason why the Blues wanted at least one of them.
Desnoyers was the fourth-overall pick from the 2025 NHL Draft. He is a big-time scorer in the QMJHL, notching 35 goals and 84 points in 56 games in his draft year. This season, he’s scored 22 goals and 78 points in 45 games.
That’s not bad, and it’s made Desnoyers one of the most intriguing prospects. At 18, he’s likely a couple of seasons away from making an impact at the pro level.
As for Iginla, the 19-year-old continued to tear up the WHL this season. He scored 41 goals and 90 points in 48 games. The sixth-overall pick from the 2024 NHL Draft has consistently put up monster numbers in the WHL.
He’ll likely turn pro this upcoming season and would get a shot at making the Mammoth’s roster out of camp next fall.
For the Blues, Iginla would have been the preferred prospect as he’s the closest to the NHL at the moment.
Mammoth have no choice but to pay Blues this summer
One of the things I’ve been saying since the deadline is that much of what the Mammoth do this offseason will depend on their playoff run. The Mammoth are on a collision course with the Edmonton Oilers in the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs.
If the Mammoth wash out in the first round, especially if they look bad, there might be a push from ownership to pay the price for a high-end forward like Thomas. A summer trade will likely drive up the price, with both Iginla and Desnoyers becoming the asking price instead of just one of them.
Utah has been invested this year in getting into the postseason. They have a solid grip on the first wild card spot. So, it seems they’ll get their shot at the dance this season. But beyond that, the organization won’t settle for just a first-round exit. That’s why circling back to Thomas could happen this summer.
Unless the Mammoth go on a Cinderella run this spring, the organization will be looking at what moves to make in order to position itself as a legit playoff contender in the years to come.
That approach could open the door for the Blues to make a killing.