One pending free agent the St. Louis Blues can sign away from each of their Central Division rivals

Yakov Trenin, Forward/Colorado Avalanche

If the Blues want to be more competitive next season, they need to get more physical, and that hasn’t been the case this year. Not counting last night’s loss to San Jose, St. Louis has just 20.0 hits per game, and besides a handful of big hitters, they need to play with more of an edge. 

One of their most physical players is Sammy Blais, but there is a good chance he won’t return next season, so perhaps Doug Armstrong looks outside the organization to fill the void. One player is an ultra-familiar face for the Blues as Yakov Trenin has played for not one but two division rivals this season - the Nashville Predators and the Colorado Avalanche. 

Trenin is a player teams could place onto their third line, but the fourth line would be ideal for the edgy forward who has finished 191 body checks in 69 games this season. He won’t give the Blues much offensively should they pry him from their Central Division rival, as he’s never scored over the 24-point threshold. But it doesn’t mean Trenin can’t score, as he once found the net 17 times in 2021-22 through 80 contests. 

He would give the Blues short-handed value but nothing on the power play. However, his 5-on-5 game has been solid this year, even in Nashville, where he landed a Corsi For of 51.1 and was on the ice for 28 goals.