The St. Louis Blues did not go quietly on Day 2 of the NHL Draft, either. The club continued weaponizing its draft capital to land one of the best shutdown defensemen in the league, Brandon Carlo, from the Toronto Maple Leafs.
This deal was a fleecing, any way you look at it.
The Leafs paid the Boston Bruins a first-round pick and a high-end prospect. The pick was a controversial one. Long story short, it turned into Gavin McKenna.
As for the prospect, Fraser Minten, he could become a solid NHL star.
That’s why this deal was a fleecing for the Blues. Carlo, when at his best, is a top-pairing shutdown guy. He’s massive at 6’5”, and uses his long reach to break up plays. He’s not overly bellicose, but can drop the body when needed.
When thinking that the Blues could deploy Carlo and Colton Parayko during games, the St. Louis blue line all of a sudden looks like a nasty patch of grizzly bears.
What makes this deal an even bigger steal is the fact that the Blues paid two third-round picks for him. That’s a far cry from the asking price Toronto had for Carlo at the NHL trade deadline.
But that’s the nature of business. The Leafs chose to sell low on Carlo.
It’s worth pointing out that Carlo missed a bunch of time with a broken foot. Carlo missed about a month in November, then had a setback and didn’t return until January. However, he just wasn’t himself.
That’s the main reason why his value plummeted the way it did. Added to that the Maple Leafs’ awful season, and it just wasn’t the best situation for him.
So, it remains to be seen if Carlo can bounce back in St. Louis. If he does, this deal could look even worse for the Maple Leafs and like a massive steal for the Blues.
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