The St. Louis Blues are going to have an interesting offseason to say the least. The upcoming NHL Draft is going to be as exciting as it is anxiety-ridden, with the newest wave of recruits joining this franchise.
Right after that is going to get even trickier. The Blues are going to have a little, not a ton, of money to spend this offseason, and not a whole lot of pending free agents to consider bringing back. That means, if Alexander Steen wants to try and strike some deals on day one of his new role as the General Manager of the Blues, he can.
If he does want to do that, which would be highly inadvisable to do so due to the weak free agency class, there are three big names to avoid. The Blues will be taking a big step back if these guys were to join.
Dom Luszczyszyn of The Athletic broke down a few of these names in his latest piece, and he is 100 percent correct on why they should be avoided.
3. Jacob Trouba
Jacob Trouba's best days are behind him, and fresh off of an $8 million AAV, he is likely not budging for anything less than that going forward. Not to mention that things worked out well for him in the move from the New York Rangers to Anaheim, giving him some incentive to possibly stay put this offseason.
The Blues could certainly use his toughness and brashness, but they are already dealing with a debilitating defensive core. Adding Trouba puts them even further behind, not ahead whatsoever.
2. Mario Ferraro
Another defensive player that won't be any bit of a benefit for the Blues is San Jose Sharks defender Mario Ferraro. He is coming off a great season, but he is going to cost a lot more than what Steen is likely comfortable to shell out.
Plus, the Blues have some defensive prospects in Adam Jiricek and the potential 11th overall pick making their way to the NHL-level in 2026-27. Ferraro is a nice band-aid, but it is dipped in gold and useless once it is ripped off.
1. Sergei Bobrovsky
Jordan Binnington and Joel Hofer will be the duo of goaltenders next season. Unless something crazy happens that involves the franchise's best goalie of all-time to be traded, and a need for another aging goaltender to come in. Sergei Bobrovsky is not the answer.
Bobrovsky, at 37 years old, is likely going to define the odds and play into his mid-40s at a great rate. But every passing season increases the chance of it being an off-year for the two-time Vezina Trophy winner. The Blues have to take a hard pass on this one.
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