It was a bit of a shocker when St. Louis Blues general manager Doug Armstrong traded fan-favorite forward Zach Bolduc to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for defenseman Logan Mailloux, a prospect with some baggage attached to him. The Blues were dealing from a position of strength on their roster and in their pipeline by trading a forward for a defenseman, but it seemed an odd move all the same.
Expectations for 2025-26 season
Rookie defenseman often have the most difficult transition from other leagues to the NHL, and hiccups were expected when Mailloux made the jump full time. What we got from Mailloux early in the season was close to a disaster, though--and it didn't help that Bolduc was tearing it up with the Habs to start the year.
Mailloux frequently found himself a healthy scratch for the Blues and, in the games he did play, was a liability just about everywhere on the ice. Through the start of the Olympic Break, he'd played 42 games, had tallied one goal and three points, and had an abysmal minus-23 goal differential while averaging under 15 minutes a night in a sheltered role. Ouch.
Grade: C+
After the Olympic Break, however, Mailloux looked like a different player. Over the final 25 games of the season, he scored four goals, registered 10 points, improved to a plus-13 goal differential, and averaged 22:34 minutes per game. The increased role started even before veteran defenseman Justin Faulk was traded to the Detroit Red Wings at the deadline; after Faulk's departure, Mailloux continued to rack up the minutes. It's the kind of late-season jump you want to see from a young defenseman, even if it wasn't in time to salvage the Blues' playoff hopes.
Where does he go from here?
The Blues nearly traded Colton Parayko at the deadline, too, and it's still a possibility he finds a new home this summer. If that happens, Mailloux's role on the backend suddenly becomes much larger; he'll have to continue playing all of next season like he did after the break this year. Add Adam Jiricek to the mix, and the Blues could have a very young blue line on opening night next season.
Mailloux has one year remaining on his entry-level contract and, at 23 years old, could become a key part of the Blues' second pair for many years to come. He just has to find consistency--and his strong finish should have us believing he's capable of getting there.
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