On Tuesday, the Minnesota Wild finally inked Kirill Kaprizov to a massive eight-year contract extension carrying a $17 million AAV. While that's good news for the Wild, it's bad news for the St. Louis Blues, a franchise that looks far less desirable of an option for players in top supporting roles who are looking for a deep playoff and Stanley Cup run.
Want more fun? The Winnipeg Jets have the reigning Hart Trophy winner, Connor Hellebuyck, while the Colorado Avalanche have a pair of top-notch stars in Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar. Even Jason Robertson leaves Dallas next season, Mikko Rantanen and Miro Heiskanen are top-level players.
Now, the Wild found their long-term star in Kaprizov, making four Central Division rivals with starpower most of the NHL can only dream of. While the Blues don't have a bad team, something they proved last season, is there anybody in the league who's saying they want to play in Arch City because Robert Thomas or Jordan Kyrou are in town?
Thomas and Kyrou are outstanding players, but you can't put them on the same level as anyone mentioned earlier. It doesn't mean one of them won't evolve into the elite of the elite, but right now, Blues general manager Doug Armstrong is forced to contend with teams that have players those around the league would love to share the ice with as teammates
There could still be good news for the St. Louis Blues
Fortunately, the Blues have something else brewing, and that's a core full of solid to upper-echelon players that include Thomas and Kyrou, plus Dylan Holloway, Jake Neighbours, Pavel Buchnevich, Brayden Schenn, Jimmy Snuggerud, Philip Broberg, Logan Mailloux, Jordan Binnington, and Joel Hofer.
Where the Blues lack in surefire starpower, they make up for it with a team-oriented lineup that's not built around one star player. Still, like Kaprizov will always be a draw for free agents and players on the trade block, ditto for Hellebuyck, MacKinnon, and Rantanen.
That said, general manager Doug Armstrong must find a way to distinguish the Blues and what they bring, even if nobody from that core develops into a top-level star. He can also sell the idea of playing for St. Louis in ways that youngsters have either been acquired or risen through the ranks and made immediate impacts, like Holloway, Broberg, and Snuggerud.
Holloway broke out last season, but the talent already in St. Louis elevated his game. Snuggerud played like a seasoned veteran immediately, and once again, you can credit the chemistry already there in St. Louis.
Still a tough sell for the Blues
Look across the league, and you'll see star-studded teams led by elite talents winning Stanley Cups. The Avs had MacKinnon, Makar, and Rantanen leading the way in 2022, while Steven Stamkos led the Tampa Bay Lightning in their back-to-back Cup wins in 2020 and 2021.
In 2024 and 2025, the Florida Panthers won, and Matthew Tkachuk and Aleksander Barkov were massive reasons for Florida's success. Nobody on the Blues has reached the caliber of any of those players on Cup-winning teams, but half their division rivals boast the talent that will easily lure solid players looking for a change of scenery.
Unless Thomas, Kyrou, Holloway, somebody, gets close to what Kaprizov has done in Minnesota or MacKinnon in Denver, Armstrong will have a tough time luring established veterans looking to make a deep playoff run.
Unless Thomas, Kyrou, Holloway, or somebody gets close to what Kaprizov has done in Minnesota or MacKinnon in Denver, Armstrong will have a tough time luring established veterans looking to make a deep playoff run.